Maybe you weren't yet born in 1990. Still, July 1990, in the history of Trinidad and Tobago, will be remembered as the month and year darkness hovered over our capital city from billowing clouds of smoke above Police Headquarters.
It is the month some lost their fathers, mothers, or loved ones - felled by guns, which weren't so prevalent on our streets.
It is not fair to ask you to imagine Trinidad and Tobago in 1990 or to feel so compelled to join with others calling for a commission of inquiry into the events.
Photos of what the streets of Port-of-Spain looked like back then may not readily be found in a Google search, and the nation building songs written in its aftermath don't make it to YouTube or the places we frequent.
It's a history lesson in the same way the 1970 Black Power movement is for some and the way the Canboulay Riots may be for others. Yet it is a part of our past we cannot escape. So what can we learn from 1990 to make it relevant to us?
We learn that change starts with you. This month marked National Youth Month, and the realization of a National Youth Policy. Despite the turbulence over the past month with the formation of the National Youth
Council of Trinidad and Tobago, there remains a good opportunity for youths of this nation to get involved in issues which affect us.
For every disenfranchised group among us, we are equipped with the wherewithal to use our minds and voices to lobby for issues affecting the vulnerable. Speak out in your schools against discrimination, violence against children, illegal guns and gang violence.
Addressing change by violent uprisings will not be necessary if we take an active role now, and work to create a future of our own design.
Do the right thing, always. It is reported that property damage from looting and fires reached an estimated $500 million from the 1990 coup attempt. What triggered others to pillage and destroy our nation's capital may not be abundantly clear, but what is certain is that these people were also living among us, as neighbours, friends and colleagues.
Did they consider that had a camera been placed on them while they were doing this, they'd do it all the same? Real responsibility comes from doing the right thing when no one is watching and making the choice to do the honourable thing.
Many times, we may not be under the watchful eye of a parent, teacher or religious leader. Thus, we must choose to act honourably at all times, knowing that we have acted in the best interest of all, and not just ourselves.
Adversity can be the catalyst to developing real character. Discipline, tolerance and production are the nation's watchwords.
Trackback(0)
 |
TrackBack URI for this entry
Subscribe to this comment's feed
