Tribute to Baba Eusi Kwayana

Apr 10, 2025 Letters

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Dear Editor

I have known Bro Eusi for decades. I first met him in my teenage years through my mother, Margaret Ackman-John, who was then active in the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) alongside youthful figures such as Ina Solomon, Joyce Heywood, and Evelyn Adams. Their political gatherings often took place at our home. I wasn’t yet deeply engaged, but I observed.

Our home was one of many small but important meeting places where ideas were exchanged, strategies debated, and bonds of solidarity quietly forged. It was in these intimate, often impromptu gatherings that I first encountered the spirit of political organising—and the quiet force that was Baba Eusi Kwayana.

Like Marcus Garvey before him, Baba Eusi played a profound role in awakening Black consciousness and deepening our understanding of African identity. But he did not merely speak of Africa—he taught it, lived it, and demanded that we recognise our rightful place within its vast and dignified legacy. Through his writings, speeches, and daily example, he challenged us to reflect deeply on who we were, who we might become, and the historical forces that shaped our sense of self.

Yet his vision went far beyond awakening. It extended to building. Long before terms like “cooperative economics” became commonplace, Baba Eusi championed them—not as jargon, but as a way of life. He believed in the enduring power of villages—not just as geographic communities, but as cultural, economic, social, and spiritual ecosystems. In them, he saw the seeds of self-reliance and communal dignity.

His advocacy for village industries and cooperative practices was no abstraction. It was a practical and principled response to the structural legacies of colonialism, and a working blueprint for local empowerment.  In my adult years, our paths crossed again when I became active in the Working People’s Alliance (WPA). From that point on, I was continually struck by his vast knowledge of human affairs, quiet intellect, deep dignity, respect for others—and above all, his humility.

Long before the formation of the WPA, Baba Eusi had already laid significant groundwork through earlier movements. He founded the African Society for Racial Equality (ASRE), and later, the African Society for Cultural Relations with Independent Africa (ASCRIA)—organisations rooted in cultural pride and political self-determination. In 1974, ASCRIA merged into the WPA, further solidifying his role in shaping a broad-based movement for justice and transformation in Guyana.

Within the WPA, his influence was unmistakable. His writings—comprising numerous books, pamphlets, and articles—formed a core part of the movement’s intellectual foundation. So prolific was his output that Nigel Westmaas and other WPA colleagues affectionately referred to him as “the Pen.” It was a fitting tribute to a man whose words were as powerful as his actions.

For me, this tribute is not only a personal honour but a historical duty. As I sat to write, I quickly realised the task’s magnitude. The breadth of Baba Eusi’s life and contributions could fill volumes. Fortunately, several published works have captured the spirit and accomplishments of the man we honour today.

One such piece is “The Year 1953 and the Shaping of the Soul of Guyana” (Stabroek News, July 1, 2019) by David Comissiong. It provides important context for understanding the events that shaped Baba Eusi’s remarkable character—and why he became one of Guyana’s most influential and, at times, controversial political activists.

That article highlights the historic 1953 elections—the first in British Guiana under universal adult suffrage—and names Eusi Kwayana (then Sydney King) among the original members of the PPP, alongside Cheddi Jagan, Forbes Burnham, Martin Carter, Janet Jagan, Fred Bowman, Ashton Chase, and Rory Westmaas. It was a pivotal moment in Caribbean history, when a newly elected socialist administration stood at odds with the old imperial order.

Baba Eusi Kwayana was born on April 4, 1925—less than a century after the abolition of slavery in Guyana and the British West Indies (1834), and just eight years after the end of Indian indentured labour in 1917. He would have grown up surrounded by the stories and lived realities of those who came before him, shaped by generations of struggle and survival. The social and political upheavals of the 1930s, including widespread riots across Guyana and the British West Indies, followed by the global disruptions of World War II, must have further sharpened his political consciousness.

That growing awareness propelled him to the forefront of activism in 1953 when, at the young age of 28, he was named among eight individuals recognised as ‘shapers of the soul of Guyana.’ A remarkable feat in its own right—but made even more so by his appointment as Minister of Communications and Works in the newly elected government. Today, as we mark his 100th birthday, he remains the last surviving member of that historic Cabinet—a living link to one of the most significant moments in our nation’s journey. Yet the full measure of his legacy stretches well beyond politics.

I’ve been reliably informed that he was instrumental in including the poetry of his friend and comrade Martin Carter in the English Literature syllabus for the General Certificate of Education (GCE) exams—a legacy that continues through the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC), where Carter’s “This Is the Dark Time, My Love” remains on the syllabus for English B.

As an educator, Baba Eusi made an indelible mark. In 1956, he founded and served as principal of County High School in Buxton, later renamed Republic Cooperative High School. Interestingly, a Google search yields no record of this institution—a gap our historians may be inspired to address.

In the article “We Decide Our Own Heroes: A Defense of Eusi Kwayana and Walter Rodney”, we find this powerful testimony from Rodney himself:

“We take great pride in the presence in our ranks of Eusi Kwayana… He is not just an intellectual or political figure, but as a human being, a person of tremendous quality… an individual who has remained uncorrupted, uncorruptible within a context of corruption and squalor. He is a tremendous example to those of us who are younger than he is… [he] moved through the various epochs of struggle, against first colonialism and then against one or another form of racist distortion in our history, and is still as young, as fresh as ever in his presentation of analysis on the contemporary situation and for the future”.

These words speak to Bro Eusi’s unwavering commitment to principled struggle, and his lifelong dedication to ending racial injustice and building an inclusive society.

He has been many things—playwright, poet, educator, political songwriter, grassroots organizer. He stayed at the crease and made a century—not with boundaries or sixes, but with steady, enduring work.

As a writer, his book A New Look at Jonestown: Dimensions from a Guyanese Perspective is a vital lens through which to understand the Peoples Temple tragedy not just as an isolated event, but as part of a broader post-colonial context. As reviewer Laura Johnston Kohl observed, it’s a must-read for those seeking to grasp both the local and global dynamics that made such a tragedy possible.

Of course, his life has not been without controversy. We recall the misinterpretation of his proposals on national unity, particularly the accusation that he advocated for racial partition. But such distortions are often wielded by those with vested interests in division. Baba Eusi’s record of cross-racial and cross-party cooperation speaks for itself.

I could go on. But I close with this: a call—perhaps already made—for the highest recognition to be bestowed upon Baba Kwayana. He has contributed tirelessly to every dimension of national life: political, social, economic, and cultural. His impact stretches beyond Guyana, resonating with freedom-loving people the world over.

Regards

Keith Scott

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