Dear Editor,
In the early days when jobs were non-existent in Anguilla, men had to abandon their families and traverse to distant shores in search of employment. As a consequence the women were left at home to raise and maintain the children with the help of, in some cases, meagre stipends or submissions that would come back. Our women have always been the ones to get things done.
Who can forget the women of Island Harbour and other places during the revolution? You had to go through those women to get to Webster, and you had better not disrespect him, for you would have the wrath of Ronald’s Ladies come down on you. I don’t say that to be disrespectful, I say it to make a point that women dating back as far as anyone can remember were the ones who raised us, who fought for us and who defended us, no matter what. Of course, if you were in the wrong, you got it from both ends.
As the title of this piece suggests, if not now, when? When will we give our women the chance they so richly deserve? The late Albena Lake Hodge, Dame Bernice Lake, and Idalia Gumbs to name just a few, have been stalwarts when it came to Anguilla. They got things done and they were highly respected. No one dared say anything negative to or about those women, because they always had country first.
It is sad to see what we’ve as a nation reverted to. Anguilla has been revered because of its people. We were ambassadors when we went abroad. When you told someone you were from Anguilla, they respected you and thought very highly of you. Anguilla sold itself on the backs of the goodwill of its people. So when I hear certain individuals talking about the new business they’ve brought in, that’s just not the case.
The time has come for our women to once more take the stage front and centre. It is a known fact that women are more committed to getting things done, and are less likely to engage in fraud and the like. For too long now we’ve watched and listened to the men make one colossal mess of things. My fellow Anguillians, we cannot continue to go down this path. Too many of us made too many sacrifices to just stand back and condone what’s going on. We simply can’t stand by and let the bloggers, who are nothing more than yellow cowards, practicing that old Anguillian past time of throwing stones and hiding their hands dictate what we can and can’t do.
Guys, when you go on the House floor and behave the way in which you do, you disgrace the hallowed halls of the people’s house. Those of you who through whichever way you were elected, know who you are. You were elected to do a job and when you get on the floor and ridicule an individual just because that person might be an opponent in an upcoming election, you ought to hang your head in shame.
The thing is this, you guys lack the class to go with the high office to which you’ve been elected. And those of you who were not elected, to think you would have the cojones to get on the floor and talk about a specific person in which you did? Back to you bloggers, you are irrelevant. If you don’t have the guts to sign your name, you don’t count. Ask yourselves the question: What have I done for my country? If you’ve not done anything to help your fellow man, then shut up and stop drinking Kool Aid.
If you’ve got something to say, write a letter to the editor and sign it with your real name. You’re either the solution or the problem. Which one are you? All of you who write that crap on AXA Reality, why don’t you do something constructive with your lives, instead of parroting the crap that someone else feeds you? Think about what you are writing. Is it true and what are your sources? Anyone with half a brain can see what the game plan is.
You guys have taken a page out of Richard Nixon playbook and that is to slam your opponent before he or she can slam you. That usually means you try to make the other guy look bad, because you have nothing to offer and that is the case. Those running for re-election cannot say they’ve done a good job, and therefore deserve another five years. So they have no choice but to try and muddy the waters for any potential threats that might cause them to lose.
Folks, we can see beyond all the smoke screens that these guys will throw at us. Again I say, it’s time to bring out the brooms and make a clean sweep. We’ve gone along with these ne’er-do-wells for far too long now. It is time we bring in new blood that are capable of getting things done. Anguilla has been lying stagnant for far too long, and it’s time we assume our rightful place in a world that has gone global.
Let us get our women involved in politics again; let us respect and welcome those indigenous brothers and sisters back home with open arms, rather than clenched fists. Let us use the so-called elites for the betterment of the rock.
Tyrone Hodge
