Intolerance & Mistrust Existing In The Caribbean! by Pooja Ramdial

What is Intolerance & Mistrust?

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-29 03:20:56 UTC

Intolerance is a form of resisting to accept beliefs and values which are not equivalent to your own. However, mistrust can be defined as lacking confidence in a particular belief or act which may not be considered as a norm to you.
In this blog, the two terms aforementioned will be discussed in connection with issues taking place in the Caribbean, along with arguments for and against.

CARIBBEAN IDENTITY

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-29 19:07:06 UTC

Our values, religion, ethnicity, race, gender, who we are as a people make up this term known as, identity.
Even up to this present time in society, people have developed an intolerance towards Caribbean cultures and traditions assuming that it is attached to an inferior lifestyle. The Caribbean identity is being destroyed due to the narrow-mindedness of newer members in society and the younger generation which contributes to the abandonment of culture.This abandonment can be due to the younger generation not being educated on their cultural values.
For instance, the young people of the nation today, tend to lean more towards westernized roots than their own, this can be evidently portrayed through their choice in music. A younger person would be more inclined to listen to a song by Taylor Swift than enjoy hymns that represent their culture, such as calypso.This is because westernized culture and traditions have become associated with a higher lifestyle.
In addition,there remains a degree of mistrust towards Caribbean goods and services as opposed to highly renowned westernized brands because there is an association towards local Caribbean brands as being of lower quality. For example, one will rather purchase a high end brand of juice from the United States such as Snapple than purchase local homemade juice from a vendor in their dear hometown.
On an opposing note, the government of these Caribbean countries and associations such as CARICOM (Caribbean Community) are making an active effort to preserve culture.There exists numerous amounts of governmental and non government organisations which are making significant efforts to preserve and bolster Caribbean traditions in a way that allows to be adequately represented in a global market such as the Cultural Heritage Conservation Programme in Jamaica and the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and the Arts in Trinidad and Tobago.The Government makes a huge financial contribution towards Carnival annually, that is,to continue preservation of Mas, Soca Monarch, Panorama, Chutney Soca Monarch so that there will
be continuity in people being more cultural inclined with their background. For example by writing soca songs, calypso, creating costumes for mas etc. Because if there is no effort being made to promote such, there is a possibility of it being lost in history.

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-30 00:13:27 UTC

Image showcasing Traditional Mas known as the Moko Jumbie from Carnival 2019 in Port of Spain, Trinidad.

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-30 00:20:31 UTC

On an annual basis the Government of Trinidad funds the Divali Nagar as a collective approach to preserve one's religious identity.
The image below showcases the hundreds of people partaking in the Divali Nagar 2019 in effort to preserve Hindu culture and support the Hindu community of Trinidad.

RELIGION

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-30 00:30:46 UTC

Sociologist Emile Durkheim defines religion as “a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, that is to say set apart and forbidden, beliefs and practices which unite into one single moral community, called a church, all those who adhere to them” (1915).
Intolerance and mistrust is exhibited in the aspect of religion as radicalization and corruption of religions within the Caribbean lead to people not wanting to associate themselves with the ideals and characters that
make up Caribbean religion. For example, Caribbean countries such as Trinidad are contributing more soldiers to ISIS
than larger countries with greater Islamic population,
due to certain Caribbean cultures being impulsive and volatile, they allow for more impulsive behaviors of violence, vice etc. Therefore a culture which already appropriates such behavior allows for people
who want to fight and have violent tendencies that it is normal to attach this type of behavior to their faith in religion. Hence people display intolerance towards Muslims after the incident of individuals joining ISIS.
Additionally people will often judge what they don't understand such as voodooism. A typical example of this is the popular assumption made about the goddess Kali in the Hindu religion, as being a symbol of violence and negative energy. When in reality a lot of Hindu religions accentuates the fact that death is neither good nor bad it is merely neutral,and it is not angry nor merciful it is just an inevitability of life.
On the contrary, certian religions are still being pushed in other cultures which allow people to strengthen their own faith that the Caribbean has not downright neglected their religion and we still have less of an atheistic population than most countries. Religious discrimination is something that is scarcely exhibited in a Caribbean population relative to other countries allowing people to support their faith in an environment that is comfortable to them despite their differences to other people.

GENDER

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-30 01:41:20 UTC

Gender "is a term that refers to social or cultural distinctions associated with being male or female." (Diamond,2002). There lies a level of intolerance and mistrust in the topic of Gender as a whole, where men and woman are not noticed on the same heights, occurrence of domestic violence, sexual harassment and in the LGBT community. All of which will be discussed in this segment of the blog.

In the 1980's, a term known as the Glass Ceiling Effect was commonly used to describe the gender inequality existing between men and women. The Caribbean is patriarchal and a lot of intolerance stems from the old view that women should be doing domestic work and taking care of the children while the men act as the breadwinners. This is seen heavily in the Caribbean society, as men are preferred over women in some work forces. Men are seen as more competent than women, and therefor they gain a higher level on the social hierarchy and obtain the higher paying jobs, promotions in the workplace as opposed to women and social benefits etc. Evidently, in some of the working establishments there is a pay gap existing, which is why men get higher salaries than woman in society. Females are not considered as equal to men and there are still biases till this present day that men are superior to women, which is where gender inequality emanate. Due to this level of superiority that men are believed to have over women leads to the corruption that is, domestic violence. Where in society today, husbands physically abuse their wives with no punishment.
In terms of sexual harassment, inequality is seen when women get blamed for being sexually victimized for the way they dress or carry about themselves whilst in some cases men don't report being assaulted or harasses as a result of being seen as "less of a man". Victimization is also seen where there is strong discrimination existing towards members of the LGBT community where people connect their personal religious beliefs in attempt to devalue the people of the LGBT society.
On another note, a lot of organisations are allowing people to fully express their sexuality at a national level with the use of rallies, LGBT movements in the Caribbean.In Trinidad, the buggery law was declared unconstitutional. There is now a month known as Pride Month, in effort to promote equality towards the homosexual, transsexuals and other members of the LGBT community. More information on this matter can be found, in the link below. Apart from LGBT movements a lot of organisations were formed to fight for women's rights, and now in some parts of the Caribbean, women are noted to be "shattering the glass ceiling" and breaking barriers which in the past would be the norm for men to fulfill.

RACE

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-30 02:41:08 UTC

Race can be defined as the physical differences that groups and cultures consider socially significant. Racial discrimination still lingers in the Caribbean society today, as people of African descent are still perceived as criminals, Chinese people are frown upon with the fallacious belief that they consume animals typically used as house pets, and Syrians falsely accused of being part of the one percent. All of these previously mentioned statements all make up the basis of racial discrimination!
The hierarchy of races in Caribbean society can be attributed to how that power was represented in colonization where Caucasians still make up that of the one percent and Syrians who were not represented during colonization but still bare great association with Caucasians also make up that one percent.Indians and Africans still share the same amount of power except Indians has slightly more authority since they were indentured laborers and not just slaves. The Chinese were tradesmen so they also represented a population of higher strata than Africans. Back in colonial times, and even till this day pigmentocracy determines your position on the social hierarchy, that is, where your skin color gave you a position in society, to which you were treated corresponding to that position.
Nevertheless, due to the Caribbean being highly diversified and ethnocentric for a culture and diversity allows for traditions to mesh and there is evidence of
cultures mixing together,For Example :Chutney Soca being established where it portrays a blend of Indian and African beats.
#JustOneLove, the song linked below is the epitome of people coming together, no matter their race or religious background and embracing their roots together, as one nation. Despite us being different, we all make up the Caribbean, #WeAreCaribbean!!

IN THE END...

poojaramdial1999 — 2019-11-30 03:26:08 UTC

The above situations aforementioned with respect to intolerance and mistrust occurring in the Caribbean today can all be subject to change in a more positive light. It is definitely not the be all and end all of issues occurring in the Caribbean but merely the starting point for change. It is our job as one people, one nation, to promote our Caribbean Identity, by embracing and showcasing our cultural roots, our religion and our race and having immense pride in our historical background. Producing this blog allowed me to accomplish a greater understanding on concerns we as a people have to overcome to continuing building and adding more value to our beloved home, the Caribbean. FOUN1101 (Caribbean Civilization) allowed me to achieve an eminent grasp on Caribbean knowledge that I will continue to appreciate in my everyday life and pass on to others as I grow older. As Marcus Garvey stated "A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots". I hope to live by quote and continue to gain more knowledge on my Caribbean culture as time goes by in my academic career. I know this knowledge will continue to support me as I venture through my tertiary education life and even as i enter the world of work.