How is one to progress if we dont know where were coming from?

Of course the issue of race and of history is going to come up EVERY time. Of course, because the truth of the matter is we have to struggle day in and night out. The truth of the matter is there is still racism and slavery going on. Maybe not in the form of whips and chains but in other ways.

P.s. By the way do you know your history?

Feel the LOVE!

What an embarrassment – every freakin weekend these fools act the ass. It’s not my job to fix this…but if it was how does one fix these damaged fools? Oh I know, A TOUGHER PRISON (not a damn all inclusive hotel to congregate – so what they can’t leave all their damn cohorts are there too) AND REHABILATION PROGRAMMES (programmes while in jail to help them realise the err of their ways and why their behavour is unexceptable; if they don’t pass they stay in jail until they do – oh and not a BSSC pass with a damn ‘D’) maybe they have never been told WHY!!. U think!! Moral of the story is….when you reduce the level of moral values to nudda, what we see today is what you get!

While we as a country are trying to fix the problem of violence by some of our youth, and others, we also need to teach our unsuspecting children and young adults that this is not the Bermuda their parents or even they knew only a few short years ago. Teach them to be vigilent and assess their environment at all times, know who is in their front and their rear, and avoid large groups where the situation looks suspect and stay off the streets after hours. Today it was bumps and bruises, tomorrow it could be another one of our children’s lives lost senselessly.

The days of “He who turns and walks away, lives to fight another day” (figuratively speaking) doesn’t work any more. That’s what I taught. How wrong I was. Your chances of being safe are much greater if you do not approach these suspicious situations to begin with. Today, the young adults who want to be recognized for being “tough”, “down”, “one of the crew”, “gang material” have no intention of letting you walk away. Our children are their ticket in. While we are raising our children to be respectable, contributors of society, be it a challenge or not, also teach them to be circumspect and vigilent regarding their personal safety… It could save their lives.

“Don’t think so” is an example, I believe, of a person who just doesn’t know and needs to be enlightened because he sees one side of the story. He says that white people spoke out and got shouted down. I ask, what were they saying? Is it possible they got shouted down because all they did was criticize instead of offering a solution. Is it possible they spoke out, from a place of fear and concern for themselves? If anyone speaks out from a concern for others and is willing to back it up with action, the time will come where others will have no other choice but to respect their stand and see the good they are trying to do. White people may have spoken out, but black people had to fight AND suffer to get ahead.

“Don’t think so” says that we didn’t want to stop having fun, fun, fun. Do you think black people were the only ones having fun, fun, fun. White people were doing that too. Their children were having babies out of wedlock, getting into trouble, using drugs and involved in homosexuality. The only difference between white and black is that the white people had the financial resources to hurry their children off the island to hide or “rehabilitate” them. Their deeds were swept under the carpet. Including when the white husbands indulged in “extracurricular activity” with the black maids in the middle of the night.

So please don’t throw out that the white folks did something great when they spoke out and were shouted down. It wasn’t enough! And to show that it was just a smoke screen, they shut down the technical school, among other things.

When the public school system started to deteriorate, instead of doing something to try and fix it, the white folks took their children out and sent them to boarding schools or private schools.

“Don’t think so” is right about one thing and that is we need to stop looking at the past. We only need look at it to ensure we don’t repeat the same mistakes and to learn from them.

I totally agree with Velerie! I say if our young men and women were brought up knowing their deep rooted BLACK HISTORY, WHITE HISTORY, ALL HISTORY, then our people wouldnt be in the sort of mess their in now. If our education and Parents were to instill, intill, instill INTELLIGENCE plus CHARACTER into their/ OUR children then our world, OUR BERMUDA would be a better place. I say OUR children because yet again, I agree with Velerie- IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD! PARENTS must educate and communicate the truths of the past and of OUR ANCESTORS. IF this was the case our youths our people would respect the struggle and the persons who helped to fight for OUR freedoms. IF this was the case then the brotherhood and LOVE that we have entrenched in our souls would shine over our community. Over our BERMUDA.

Maybe the issue with our people is that we are gifted with reason (good), BUT no morals (bad)! I say what I’ve stated above because this is a mere part of the solution that can help to nurture and rebuild our community.

P.S. I’m 22.
feel the love!

People, Bermudians in particular, need to learn the value of tears. They are the body’s way of getting rid of toxic chemicals like cortisol and adreniline that are produced in the brain when we become frightened or sad. It is important to cry. Suppression of tears, like suppression of any emotion, eventually leads to an inability to feel any emotion except anger/rage – a very unhealthy state. When you cannot feel because your own emotions have been suppressed, you cannot have empathy for others. That is at least a part of why we are in this state today. We teach our children that it is not OK to cry as a response to feeling sad, disappointed or hurt, so how can they then have concern for others who are sad or hurt?
When children cry, they need comfort. Comfort isn’t spoiling, it is helping a child feel safe. They are very small beings in a very large and often unfriendly and frightening world. Yelling at them, or doing other things to “toughen them up” often ends up giving us more folk who have to fight and intimidate to show how tough they are.
I realize there are so many more causative factors that impact on our present social scene, but it is all linked.

I may have once had that same attitude until I developed some compassion for people who are just not aware that they are their own worst enemies because they just don’t know any better. I am of the school now that says it takes a village to raise a child and those that have knowledge and are capable are obligated to teach those that don’t know. If they don’t want to listen then our conscience is clear.

I am not blaming the “white man” because I believe that when we become of age we make our own decisions but if the resources are not there to help us break free of the “slave mentality” then we will continue to live in that mode of thinking. The resources were not there back then and are questionable now.

This is my home, MINE and I’m not going to stand by and say “stupid Bermudians” because I am one and I’m not going to down myself. It’s this kind of comment that’s helped to create the problem in the first place. Neither am I going to say “well they made their bed, let them lie in it” because that kind of thinking is ignorant because taking no action is going to allow the situation to get worse. And like it or not, we all have to participate in being part of the solution.

I don’t see any answers to these thugs n their thug life no matter what color they r…..

First off , it’s not ’20′ or so youths causing all this trouble.
(denial number one)

Secondly stop hanging on to historical references.. Do you really believe that everytime a black kid (or adult) does something irresponsible , misguided and in very poor judgement in the back of their mind is a reference to slavery or some boogeyman white image making them do it ?
(denial number two)

And if Bermuda is such a terrible place for blacks how come black tourists can’t believe that there’s any black poverty here ..How come they wish they could stay and get a bite of the cherry here too ?

As for yout first paragraph .. BS ! !

Utter BS

Stop passing the buck.
Many years back , when whites could see the trouble looming on the horizon and dared speak of it they were branded as racists and shouted down. So what did they do ? They said ‘f**k it’ .. you created the problem with willy nilly breeding , now you can sort it out.
Well , you all didn’t want to stop having fun , fun , fun .. And here we are now. Start cleaing up your own mess .

I always look at how the Jews raise their children and the Chinese (although they are becoming more Westernized now). These cultures train their children from very young and cultivate from very young their standards and beliefs into their children’s characters.

As Bermudians we teach our children not to express themselves from very young by telling them to shut up when they cry or hit them to make them stop instead of dealing with the issue of why they are crying because we don’t have the patience. We teach them to suppress who they are instead of teaching them how to channel their efforts and express themselves in a healthy way from young. We think that when they start cursing at 4 years old, its cute until it becomes a problem and too late to change their behavior. Surely if 4 year olds can learn to curse, they can start to be taught to go in the right direction.

I think part of the solution is to reach and teach the boys and girls before they understand about having babies and offer counseling and support for parents who have problem children to help save our future generations.

I saw Trevor Moniz and Shawn Crockwell today at Herring Bay Market place…l think they were trying to drum up voters or something. To me, they were syanding there looking at everybody that didn’t know they were and shaking their heads, not good. They didn’t do or say anything, as if they were there to have you bow down to them because they think they are the only people that have half a brain or something?

We are in a state and there is no end to this unless everybody works together.

But we’re in Bermuda, so forget that idea!

Ironically , this is something that white Bermudians have been saying for many ,many years, but Nutter won’t ever be called ‘racist’ for his opinion.

… so the fight will happen at 1215 instead of 230???

I hate the way these muppets act, but they are just a small segment of our youth. The majority of our youth and young adults are doing good things no Great Things and moving forward in a positive direction. It’s just the media outlets that give these A holes any lip service.

Celebrate our youth that are doing the right thing and forget about these punks..