Shared values and reciprocal recommitment

Dec 15, 2020 Editorial

Kaieteur News – Today we share extracts from an opinion piece by Marc Morial in USA Today dated October 13 and titled: “To heal our nation, America needs to recommit to shared values.” We think that this is relevant to Guyana. For we can learn and grow, if we look at ourselves critically, appreciate frankly the existing gaps, and then work tirelessly to close. Unless we actually commit to doing so, then we waste time, energy, and deceive ourselves. We condemn ourselves to exactly where we are stuck.
Up north, Americans are battered by a combination of extraordinary crises: a stubborn pandemic, severe national angst and anger over racial injustice and inequality, and the massive economic dislocations. These are the current raging contexts of Guyana. We can allow to overwhelm, or we can resolve to respond powerfully.
As stated by Mr. Morial, “One of the most powerful means of assuring racial and social justice lies in building a shared sense of American values and commitment to each other.” From our perspective that is universal, has sweeping application to all Guyanese willing to embrace that ethos. The ethos that, indeed, we possess an identical sense of values across our racial wounding and hurting. The ethos that is driven by visions and passions for “racial and social justice.” It is an ethos that, if sincere, starts at the presidential level, courses downward through cabinet and public service, and spreads out in the manner of an inspiration to touch and move countless citizens. If that maxim about a lie repeated often enough transforms into infallible truth, then the same must hold about an ethos of values and commitment. It helps us to rediscover the beginnings of when we were simpler people, not less wise, only more truthful and authentic in the unalterable values of the dignities that were inseparable.
Shared values and commitment to each other highlights those features that were cemented by unselfishness, self-respect, and respect for one another at a very fundamental level. This was the essence of an older, vanished Guyana, which, if we are truly serious, we must stop shallow speechifying and start exemplifying in the many walks of our lives.
Look at us: we have oil in abundance, but dire scarcity in anything that could offer hope in removing the grinding frictions in our society. We have democracy, as chorused by president, pundit, and a pantheon of the powerful, who find comfort in such shallow platitudes, which shelter the glaring inequities and injustices in this land. It is where the law is what the rich and powerful decides; and justice a prostitute without a blindfold and a nakedness that reveals numerous untruths.
We have COVID-19, and we calm and cure ourselves through cursing each other. We used to titillate ourselves about the urgency of truth and reconciliation. Now we are content with the divisive democracy that pierces, and then parcels us out into lots and segments. This makes us happy and secure in the hypocrisy of our intellects, our manifestoes, our programmes, our spiritual beliefs, and our very beings.
But, as the USA Today writer reminded us: “We can and will overcome these challenges if we as a nation face them head-on with shared values and a commitment to helping each other in our role as fully committed citizens.” Specifically, there must be “a new commitment to civics and democracy education at true scale across the nation” so that we Guyanese can “achieve a new level of genuine democracy and effective self-governance.” To date, we have not come anywhere near to the genuine. We are openly hostile to neighbour, and on this we pin self-governance.
Nationally, “we have lost tolerance for diverse views,” we have lost patience with each other, even basic regard. On this, we erect new bridges, new cities, and new physical facilities, while ignoring the national decays that destroy us. We can proceed with the arrogance and self-assurance of reckless minibus drivers, to our lasting detriment. Alternatively, we can pause and probe for that peace that binds and builds from the bottom up. It begins, continues and ends with shared values and reciprocal commitment to each other. Otherwise, we trick ourselves. We at this paper so believe.

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