–as Jamaica observes National Hero’s Day

HAVING imprinted the values of equality and justice in Caribbean societies, today, more than 35 years after his death, Dr. Walter Rodney is being celebrated by Jamaicans as a national hero.
This recognition of one of Guyana’s more influential politicians of the post-independence period, emerged at the annual Walter Rodney lecture organised by the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona Institute of Caribbean Studies.

The event, which was held last weekend, focused on the life and work of Dr. Rodney and Black rights activist, Marcus Garvey, within the context of social and economic emancipation.
It was human rights activist, Latoya Nugent, who was the first to embrace the ideals of Dr. Rodney during her presentation, which focused on marginalised women. She said that she particularly admired the ‘hero’, because he was a revolutionary.
“I particularly admire him because he was a revolutionary. He recognised what many activists failed to recognise, which was that for the working class to be liberated, justice must have prevailed. Because for him, liberation was grounded in justice,” she told the audience.

Specifically referencing his book, ‘The Groundings with my brothers’, Nugent, who is also the Director of We-Change, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), said that the ideology represents her ideal for transformative engagement in the 21st Century.
She quoted an excerpt from the book which read: “I was prepared to go anywhere that any group of Black people were prepared to sit down to talk and listen. Because, that is Black Power; that is one of the elements; a sitting down together to reason, to ‘ground’ as the brothers say.”
She would, however, note that while Rodney’s work primarily focused on the working class, the extent to which working-class women were marginalised was excluded from it.
This notwithstanding, she reiterated that his life and work are testimony of his commitment to the working class, and his attempt at liberating them from the oppression that exists even to this day.

Dr. K’adawame K’nife, lecturer at the Mona School of Business, also examined the contributions of Dr. Rodney to Guyana and, by extension, the Caribbean within the economic context.
He pointed out that one of the reoccurring themes of Dr. Rodney’s teachings was reexamining how society was planned.
This had featured prominently in Dr. Rodney’s work, because of his focus on the marginalisation of the working class. Dr. K’nife also referenced the fact that Dr. Rodney placed great importance on the need to examine how development is approached by Caribbean societies. And according to him, more than 30 years after the death of the regional hero, it remains one of the most important issues in the Caribbean.
On Sunday, Jamaica observed National Heroes’ Day, which recognises seven national heroes from Jamaican’s history. But although Dr. Rodney is not one of them, his work and contribution to the Jamaican society does not go unnoticed, as he is annually recognised around this time of year for his role in Jamaica’s history. Symposiums and lectures are usually held in honour of him.

Dr. Rodney had attended the University College of the West Indies (UCWI) in Jamaica on a scholarship, graduating in 1963 with a first-class degree in History, thereby winning the Faculty of Arts prize.
On October 15, 1968 the Government of Jamaica, led by then Prime Minister Hugh Shearer, declared Rodney persona non grata.
The decision to ban him from ever returning to Jamaica was because his advocacy for the working poor in that country caused riots to break out, eventually claiming the lives of several people and causing millions of dollars in damages.
These riots, which started on October 16, 1968, are now known as the Rodney Riots, and they triggered an increase in political awareness across the Caribbean, especially among the Afro-centric Rastafarian sector of Jamaica, documented in his book, ‘The Groundings with my Brothers’.