Recently the conversation on boycotts in NY led me to take a more critical look at the injustices that the PPP government have been meting out to Afro-Guyanese over the past three decades. It is astounding to me that even I tended to process these vile acts individually and not as part of an organized, structural, plan to oppress and subjugate Afro-Guyanese citizens, even though it very clearly is an organized plan. The PPP government has essentially been carrying out a plot to subjugate Afro-Guyanese citizens through boycott, imprisonment, arrest and extrajudicial killings and we have all retreated into acceptance and silence regarding these atrocities.
It is time to address the glaring injustice that plagues our society; the PPP’s boycott of Afro-Guyanese must end. For too long, Afro-Guyanese have been systematically marginalized and denied opportunities, relegated to low-wage jobs and denied access to quality education and economic empowerment.
Education has always been a priority for Afro-Guyanese, and it is our commitment to finding ways to educate our children outside of the public school system, (which the PPP has run into the ground), that allows our people access to public service jobs and administrative opportunities. However through a massive and structural policy to boycott any progress for these workers by suppressing wages and ignoring the unions, the PPP has managed to suffocate the potential of Afro-Guyanese individuals and communities.
The PPP government of Guyana is well aware of the power and resilience of Afro-Guyanese people. They have witnessed the countless achievements of Black intellectuals and progressive leaders, and that success drives them to aggressively commit to boycotting any seeds of Black excellence which they do not control. They simply will not allow independent Black excellence to flourish. Instead, they resort to tactics of insecurity and discrimination, ensuring that black talent is boycotted and opportunities for advancement are limited to Afro-Guyanese who genuflect to them. It is a profound neurosis that the PPP leaders continue to display.
One glaring example of this discrimination is the corrupt procurement system, which channels large contracts exclusively to individuals of Indian descent. This not only perpetuates inequality but also results in wasted resources and poor-quality service delivery. Meanwhile, as discrimination against black businesses persists, further exacerbating economic disparities, It opens the door for unserious thinkers to repeat the fallacy of the Afro-Guyanese inability to efficiently run a business.
To add insult to injury, the PPP often manipulates individuals within the Afro-Guyanese community who are steeped in anti-blackness, using them as tools to enforce the subjugation of their own people. Additionally, they continue to target African-led organizations, directing the local private sector and the foreign oil companies not to contribute to Black-led institutions, in their quest to dismantle any efforts towards empowerment and self-determination.
We must break free from these chains of oppression. Afro-Guyanese have contributed to the building of this nation for over 400 years, and it is high time we reap the benefits of our ancestor’s labor. The boycott against black individuals and organizations must come to an end, and true equality and justice must prevail.
As a nation, we cannot afford to continue down this path of division and discrimination. We have to truly build a future where every citizen has the opportunity to thrive and succeed.