JAMAICA is a racially moved, male chauvinist, colour-coded, violent, unequal society, and the Portland Eastern election may be the crucible in which these issues are resolved or add to confusion. We are a 92.1 per cent black nation; the rest white, Chinese, Indian, Middle Eastern roots, so “out of many one” is risible, hopeful at best, at worst cynical, as mass mixed breeding ended with slavery and minority groups hold their sperm and import brides.

Would blacks too if they had power? The British were protestant; unlike Catholic Spain, where every sperm is a life, so their ex-colony, the Dominican Republic, is all brown today — not like here.

The choice of Damion Crawford to run against Ann-Marie Vaz is destiny. Here minorities face derogatory statements such as “Chiney nyam dog” or “Coolie two fi one” with impunity. American “nigger’ is current, but like Sambo or Coon, and Honky or Cracker for white people, not our history. Many wish to be white and bleach, so we have no derogatory name for white people.

Damion, “the Dread”, exposed the elephant in the room and we should not be surprised as our Independence is larded with race. Recall, we led West Indies Federation — a racial union of black majority, black-ruled nations. Caricom did not have the decency to exit the racist profile and Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) bolstered it with black Haiti and rebuffed brown Dominican Republic, our closest neighbour and fastest-growing economy — talk about cutting off nose to spite face! Add to this the current unfair reparations hype to levy on white buyers, but exonerate black sellers of African flesh; brainwashed with black racism in plain sight.

So black vs white, rich vs poor, men vs women (do you hear gun-fire about #meToo here?) are alive in Portland Eastern as politicians legitimised them for 56 years. Still, all want to live as whites; want the German BMW and some 80 per cent want to live in America.

Carl Stone, and my friend Rosie, wrote of 21 families, now fewer, all white, some new names. Since 1962, blacks have had power politics, police, army, so we own crime and negative growth; so the existential black vs white conflict is not over as we blew 56 years and now the Empire fights back! They were paid out at Emancipation, consolidated at Independence, now rolling in cash.

Why not buy Cabinet one seat at a time, so gobble up Portland? Ann-Marie and Damion are rivals, but they are pawns in a bigger struggle, and as our masses did not wake up for Emancipation or Independence, will they for Portland Eastern?

In the sweep of history Damion and Ann-Marie, two good people vying to serve and burnish our democracy. Male vs female is hypocrisy as #MeToo has no traction here. But Damion is wrong about Ann-Marie. She has choice beyond “Mrs Vaz”. She’s a board chair and executive in the extended-family empire. So she is funded by business moguls; do the masses crowd-fund Damion? The riches, race, class issues are bigger than both of them.

In all facets of black life — education, crime, jobs, health, family, housing — we hurt, and it’s visceral for Damion. We elected black men for 56 years and even under not-so-young-anymore Andrew Holness inequality grows. As Jamaicans, black and white, we want our national project to thrive as no black nation ever had sustainable growth; we can be first!

Peeps aver “ah money wi seh” is rife in Portland Eastern. The Jamaica Labour Party continues to blitz the streets with goodies — roads, food, bridges, farm tools, tanks, seed, fertiliser. Can Damion’s Garvey-type appeal raise consciousness to win the poll, or will Ann-Marie’s strength of cash prevail? It seems to reprise the bread vs education party fights of the early 20th century, but though dormant since Independence today the ’empire’ fights back! It wants to take charge, so expect fireworks.

On April 4, we will have answers to some of our questions. Stay conscious!

Franklin Johnston, D Phil (Oxon), is a strategist and project manager; Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (UK); and lectures in logistics and supply chain management at Mona School of Business and Management, The University of the West Indies. Send comments to the Observer or franklinjohnstontoo@gmail.com.