Richardson On OBA, Race, Politics & More

“If you share our ideology of building a fairer Bermuda for all Bermudians, you are welcomed with open arms in the Progressive Labour Party,” Anthony Richardson said.

Anthony Richardson — the incumbent and PLP candidate for Constituency #7 Hamilton South — said, “In this campaign, the Progressive Labour Party has talked about women, we’ve talked about young people, we’ve talked about the sandwich generation, we’ve talked about our seniors and we’ve talked about Bermudians of all stripes.

“Here’s what the OBA has had to say over the last few weeks: OBA Candidate Linda Smith said that she is ‘more comfortable’ with the OBA and said she doesn’t know if she’d ‘feel welcomed’ in the PLP. Then days later, OBA Candidate Robin Tucker said that the PLP is very ‘race focused.’ She also called addressing race issues a ‘dog whistle.’

“Former OBA Chair, Senator and candidate Justin Mathias noted that when the party had an opportunity to put a different kind of candidate in C22 and Scott Pearman in C25, they chose a different path.

“If you share our ideology of building a fairer Bermuda for all Bermudians, you are welcomed with open arms in the Progressive Labour Party. The OBA pretends like they are the party of inclusion, but, the reality is, there is a stigma within the white community about being associated with the PLP. Why is that?”

“Why does the OBA talk about dog whistling? There is nothing wrong with addressing the reality of race and racism in Bermuda. It is an issue that continues to this day. Subconscious bias. People being looked over because of the colour of their skin. Judgments that happen thousands of times all across the country every day,” Mr Richardson continued.

“The reality is, policies that focus on Black Bermudians are not about exclusion but about correcting past injustices that have lasting effects. If statistics show that Black Bermudians face higher unemployment rates, lower wages, and greater barriers to economic opportunity, then targeted policies are necessary to address those gaps. This is not about race preference—it is about ensuring that all Bermudians, regardless of background, have a fair chance at success.

“The argument that the PLP is too focused on past injustices and has failed to move forward misrepresents the role of historical context in shaping present-day policies. The struggles of leaders like Dame Lois Browne-Evans and Frederick Wade were not isolated moments in time; they laid the foundation for ongoing efforts toward economic and social justice. Acknowledging this history is not about ‘living in the past’— as Robin said – it is about ensuring that Bermuda does not repeat it,.

“We can’t pretend that race and racism is a thing of the past when we get comments like this from the OBA. And, when the OBA does things like what Justin Mathias told us about with candidate selection, Bermudians should look at the OBA slate and see who they put in what seats and then they can decide for themselves what the OBA is really all about,” Mr Richardson concluded.

For full coverage of the 2025 Election and past elections, visit the links below, with comprehensive coverage available on our network website BermudaElections.com, the leading source of data and election videos.

• All: Our coverage of the 2025 General Election here
• 2025 Candidates: List of the 109 candidates
• Constituencies: Data/past results of all 36 constituencies
• Videos: Over 200 videos spanning multiple elections here
• Official: The Government’s election website here
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