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Definition of 'Bermudian'
October 26, 2007
Dear Sir,
I think it is perfectly legitimate for PLP leaders to want to empower blacks and to say it so everyone can hear it. Julie Gunther who wrote the letter in The Royal Gazette (October 26) "What is a Bermudian" says she also supports black empowerment but is worried, as probably many whites are, that they will be left out.
She wonders if whites are included in our leaders' definition of Bermudian. I will leave it to Calvin Smith whose speech alarmed her and Brown and Scott if they wish to respond to her question. I see this letter as an opportunity to examine our usage of the word "Bermudian". We all know that it has long been a practice of white Bermudians to define "Bermudians" as black Bermudians when the context is negative and blacks have learned to do the same.
Indeed it is so common a practice that I have often wondered if whites regard themselves as Bermudians. It appears to me to be a negative characteristic that both races share perhaps for different reasons. If we want the definition of "Bermudians" to be inclusive of all who have the legal status of Bermudian then it needs to start with each individual and of course we would like to see it reflected in our leaders.
Here is an exercise for all Bermudians (and non-Bermudians too because many of you pick up our bad habits and use it to your advantage). Try to be conscious and honest about who we are referring to when we use the word "Bermudians" and the context in which we use it. Do I mean all Bermudians or do I mean one race in particular? To which Bermudians do I habitually attribute good traits and which Bermudians get most of the bad?
FRANCES EDDY
Warwick