EDITORIAL - Where has the pride gone?

WHERE has the pride of some Barbadians gone?

 

Many of our foreparents did not have much. A small chattel house without the must-haves of today was what they called home – no running water, electricity, telephone nor television. But one thing they certainly had was pride. This could be seen in the way they carried themselves and maintained their home, both inside and out. A cutlass and hoe, or even bare hands, were used to ensure that unsightly weeds around the house, particularly at the front, were removed. Steps at the front of the house, even if unpainted or not plastered, were scrubbed clean to ensure the absence of mould. Around Christmas time, if it could be afforded, the house was painted and marl thrown down to give the appearance of a “White Christmas”. In the event that there was grass or bush around that encroached on their space, sheep, cows and goats were employed to “clear away” the area.

 

Today, as one drives through several areas of Barbados, it is evident that pride in one’s surroundings seems to have fallen into the gutter, along with other forms of trash that we see blocking up these water ways. Some persons just cannot be moved to clean up their surroundings, discarding objects that can hold water and become a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Garbage cans, when not properly secured, become a playground for animals; bits of trash often making their way onto the streets only to be transported to other areas where they become an eye sore. There is disinterest in the upkeep of personal surroundings and this is intolerable. Why is there a blatant disregard for upholding our civic duty to maintain our public surroundings?

 

This attitude of indifference escalated in one instance recently, and was captured on cellphone video and shared across social media for all the world to bear witness. The video shows a vehicle stopped next to a fence surrounding a property, and one woman lifting bags of what is most likely garbage out of the trunk and throwing them over the fence onto the property. As the person on the property records the woman’s actions, the subject of the video takes out her own phone and she too records from her vantage point, before returning to the car and leaving.

 

In the wake of this appalling behaviour, we once again ask, where has the pride in some Barbadians gone? It is disturbing that in these times, when the Government and other donor agencies are forging ahead with the urban revitalisation and creation of green spaces in Bridgetown, it has to beg persons to stop littering in our communities.

 

With regard to public places, we can call for more policing followed by heavy fines for offenders, but there comes a point of time where appeals must be made to the moral judgement of people. Though this is obviously skewed in some persons, we have to remind others that such places of recreation are not simply for the amusement of tourists but also locals, and for the pleasure of future generations to come. We should therefore play our part in the upkeep our environment.

 

The same appreciation should be given to our own neighbourhoods. Not only is illegal dumping unsightly, it also poses a health risk to yourselves and others. We can and should do better, Barbadians, in order to be able to boast of a clean and beautiful gem of a country.