The Sunday football tradition was in full display this past weekend as several eyes were glued to televisions, mobile devices and screens of all kinds to watch football games. Bahamian football fans were not left out we as watched our favorite teams and cheered in hopes that they would be victorious.
On the other side were fans whose teams were not playing but who watched and hoped that teams in the same division as their club lost so that the team they support could have a greater chance of climbing up the division ladder or maintaining their top spot. In a third category were those who just watched for the love of the game with no allegiances to any team in particular. There is no doubt that football fans will fall into one of the aforesaid categories at some point in time.
Many would agree that the match-up between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots was the highlight of the day. This writer is an avid supporter of the former and held great hope and anticipation that my football club would be the club to end the Patriots' winning streak of 8-0.
However, it was not to be; a field goal by a veteran Patriot would be the deciding factor in a game that came straight down to the wire for a victory of 27-26 in favor of the Patriots. The disappointment of this writer in the outcome soon gave way to reflections on the correlation between the football game and the challenges that we face as a nation. This piece considers the Patriots' triumph over the Giants in a classic game for the ages in the context of a nation at a crossroads.
Giants in the land
The Bahamas is currently navigating through some very challenging and difficult waters; deep seas and oceans that we have not sailed before. It appears that we have found ourselves in a perfect storm and we are at a loss as to how we will get ourselves out of this predicament.
The level of violent crime is unacceptable and our homicide rate is disturbing to say the least, albeit it has been reported by relevant authorities that other crimes are on the decline. The unemployment rate is quite high as many of our Bahamian brothers and sisters have lost their jobs, particularly in the financial services and tourism sectors and as a consequence many have lost their single biggest investment in life - their homes.
Beneath the numbers and the statistics are the pain, suffering, loss and grief that Bahamians are forced to endure from day to day. Fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, cousins and friends just to mention a few are being slain on our streets. How could we forget the recent senseless killing of a young teacher allegedly in the presence of her child?
Moreover, the tales of many of the tactics being employed by criminals in our nation today have left the nation and its people both emotionally and economically destabilized as many opt to stay home in this environment while businesses suffer the consequences of these actions. The fear of crime has risen to an all-time high in our country, revealing a giant in our land.
See no evil - hear no evil
In the late 80s, Hollywood produced a film titled "See no evil, hear no evil". The film starred two of this writer's favorite comedians - the late Richard Pryor, who acted as a blind man, and Gene Wilder who acted as a deaf man.
Richard Pryor, who was in search of a job, was employed by Gene Wilder at his newsstand. Both men were constrained to work together in an attempt to survive following a murder that took place at the newsstand. The blind man and the deaf man had to use their collective senses to find the killer of the victim in order to free themselves as suspects of the crime and to ensure justice prevailed.
Like Pryor and Wilder in their acting roles, our normal sense of obligation should be to fulfill our civic duty and assist law enforcement with solving crimes. There is absolutely no way that they can be expected to do it on their own. However, the culture in The Bahamas seems to be deteriorating to a see no evil hear no evil mentality due to the fear that to see and hear could cost one's life, job or standing in society and/or various organizations.
Hence, due to fears of becoming a victim of crime or victimization, many have been silenced while diverse aspects of Bahamian society continue to deteriorate. Unlike the characters of Pryor and Wilder, who were born with these unfortunate defects, many Bahamians whether justified or not have chosen to take the high road by playing deaf/blind.
When it comes to ethical standards, many have chosen to turn the blind eye for fear of victimization, being outcast or losing one's source of income. Hence, issues of bribery, corruption, immorality and the like tend to be the order of the day and create an unfortunate perception that good cannot and will not prevail over evil.
On the crime front, there are genuine concerns that in the absence of a robust witness protection program, persons that choose to testify may be at risk of losing their lives. This is an issue that the government must address in a meaningful, comprehensive and confidential manner to protect the justice system of our nation.
At the same time, we should also instill in our children from an early age the importance of doing the right thing and standing on the side of truth and justice; we must encourage them to be prepared to stand alone and call out wrongdoing no matter the consequences.
The perception of the people
The Bible recounts the story of Moses, a Hebrew leader who grew up in the household of the Egyptian Pharaoh. Moses was charged with leading the Israelite children out of bondage (Egypt) and position them for the journey into the promised land (Canaan). Moses however, would not be the leader to take the Israelite children into the promised land as this task would be left to Joshua.
In preparation for the journey, Moses sends ahead 12 spies to survey the land and to bring back reports. All the spies report that the land is lovely and there are grapes in the land, but that there are giants there - suggesting that it would be difficult to dethrone these giants based upon their size. However, two of the 12 spies, while acknowledging what was asserted by the others, declared that while there were giants, they were well able to possess the land.
In The Bahamas, many Bahamians are stating that neither the Free National Movement (FNM) nor the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), both of which have ruled over the past eight years, have the solution to address the vexing issue of crime. This is partly true because crime is a complicated matter that requires a multi-faceted approach involving the family, community, religious organizations, civic society and the government.
However, at the end of the day, a government is chiefly responsible for the safety of its people and residents within its borders. Nevertheless, we must not perceive that the problem is beyond us, but rather declare that we are well able.
The solution rests with the patriots
Adequate resources should be allocated and support provided to counter the criminal element in our society. This should be done with the knowledge that resources are not limited to funds to procure equipment or engage more law enforcement officers but must also include the allocation of time backed by robust laws and an enforcement culture. It is now time for the citizenry to revert to being our brother's keeper by moving more toward community involvement and advocacy.
We must declare to the criminal element that we are taking our country back. It is clear that some of our young people have lost their way and in this sense, the proverbial village must return to help raise our children.
This writer is a strong advocate of involvement by civic organizations for youth that promote character development. Moreover, the government must strongly look at the possibility of introducing a mandatory national youth service for at-risk youth at the minimum to assist in reversing the current trend of violence. This is the time for all right thinking Bahamas to "get involved" as Tyrone "Dr. Off" Fitzgerald so eloquently stated in his song.
In the final analysis, the patriots of The Bahamas must arise from the shadows and confront the giants that have invaded our nation. We must not be dwarfed by these ills or paralyzed by the magnitude of the issues at hand. We will overcome even if the battle goes down to the wire and we must depend on a field goal to be victorious. This writer is convinced that the battle against the giants of crime and the social ills we face are no match for the indomitable spirit of the patriotic Bahamian people.
o Arinthia S. Komolafe is an attorney-at-law. Comments on this article can be directed to a.s.komolafe510@gmail.com.
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