Today, we observe the 183

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anniversary of the emancipation of Africans in British colonies from slavery. Even as we reflect on the atrocities committed against our ancestors, questions arise as to whether the day’s significance has waned among Jamaicans.

This was brought into focus last year when news emerged that consideration was being given to merge the Emancipation and Independence holidays to produce a long holiday weekend similar to what obtains on Good Friday and Easter Monday.

A survey conducted in response to the call for the merger of the two holidays found that that the majority of respondents, 62 per cent, were in favour of the move, “signifying very strong acceptance of the idea of a long holiday weekend at that time,” according to pollster Don Anderson.

He said respondents cited various reasons for their acceptance of the concept, with the majority, 43 per cent, seeing it as a means of getting a long weekend rest; 23 per cent regarding it as an opportunity to spend more time with family, and 11 per cent viewing it as an opportunity to celebrate more. Some 26 per cent of respondents said they would not support the proposal. Noteworthy, 34 per cent of those polled said the holidays are insignificant for them and, against that background, it doesn’t matter what move the government makes in this regard.

Nonetheless, August 1, 1834 marks a special day for people of African descent in former British colonies as it was when their ancestors were given freedom after hundreds of years in chattel slavery.

Emancipation Day, August 1, was officially introduced as a public holiday in Jamaica in 1893, but it was discontinued in 1962, when the island gained independence from the British, and replaced by Independence Day which was observed on the first Monday in August.

However, the day was reinstituted as a national holiday in 1997 under the administration of then Prime Minister PJ Patterson.

Observer Online made contact last week with the former prime minister, an advocate for furthering education on Jamaican culture and strengthening African-Caribbean ties, to opine on the “Emancipendence” discussion.

Observer: Emancipation Day is coming up next week, and this question will address the topic for those who don’t completely comprehend the day or perceive it as nothing more than a day off from work. What is the history of Emancipation Day, and why do we observe it?

Patterson:Emancipation Day [commemorates] the freedom of slavery which our ancestors attained some time ago in 1834. Slavery is accepted as the most heinous crime against humanity and we won that battle for emancipation by the resolute resistance of this system by our fore parents. And, in fact, when slavery was abolished … it had to be paid in two distinct ways. First of all, by 20 million pounds …to the owners of the plantations [and] by the need for the slaves, by the insistence of the colonial power, that had to serve for another four years without enumeration. So, it is a figment for anyone to suggest that the slave owners weren’t repaid for the property and… partly in coins, partly in source of apprenticeship when we gained [emancipation] on the first of August 1838, that payment was partially blood of our ancestors and succeeding generations and even the monetary payment was so huge, that it was only completed in 2015. So, we really have to celebrate this day as a day of freedom and we have to insist that even in the year of the COVID pandemic [that] there is an obligation to have a proper observance of Independence Day, a day of independence is another day, which deserves separate attention. We can’t look at it in terms of convenience for some, we can’t make comfort and convenience our response to the death and monstrosity of the middle passage so we have to maintain our insistence and for those reasons we must assure the appropriate observance.

Observer: In a 2005 Emancipation Day speech, you said “The abolition of slavery meant more than the emancipation of the slaves. It also meant the emancipation of those who held them in bondage, at least from the burden of callousness and greed – factors that devalue human life and desecrate any society intended to nurture that life.” Speak further to the significance of Emancipation, on how it helped to build the nation to where it is now?

Patterson: The abolition of slavery and the commemoration of Emancipation Day should be an arena which is celebrated, or commemorated, not only by the [descendants] of slaves but should also weigh heavily on the conscience of those who were the enslavers; no reasonable person today of the descent of planters of that time can fail to have a sense of guilt. So it is a freedom, not only for us, but it is also a situation that demands recognition of the crime against humanity, which is slavery, and which their own ancestors engaged. And we are beginning to see more and more signs of that desire to redress the shameful treatment of those who were captured in Africa and brought to the Americas. We noted, for example, that Glasgow University has given a grant to the University of The West Indies. We have other cases where even in the boardroom in the Bank of England, photographs of former governors at that time, their pictures have been removed from the walls. I think one has to understand that it was the fruits of the enforced labour of slavery that made the metropolitan powers what they were, and to a very large extent what they [became] because, remember, sugar was regarded as an invaluable element to people in Europe at that time… and it created a fortune directly and indirectly for insured companies, for financial institutions.. . It was therefore set that…by them as they look back with shame on what their fore parents did against slaves.

Emancipation Day was introduced in 1892 as a day to be commemorated by the liberated diaspora in Jamaica. When the country gained independence in 1962, it was replaced by Independence Day. In 1997, 25 years later, your administration reinstituted and acknowledged Emancipation Day as a day to be commemorated. What was your reasoning for reinstating this day as a public holiday?

Patterson: The founding fathers of our nation decided in London that Emancipation Day should disappear as a public holiday and the first Monday of August would be Independence Day and, therefore, the two days were merged into one. That resulted in an abandonment of Emancipation Day and a sliding day for Independence Day. Come 1962, Emancipation Day was not a public holiday in its own right, our Independence Day was the first Monday, which had happened to be on the 6

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of August. I shared a committee with the late Rex Nettleford to look at how our National symbols and observances would contribute to sustaining our cultural unity. That committee had convocations throughout the length and breadth of Jamaica in parishes, and in written and oral submissions and contributions in the press. The report accepted that an essential part of our ….psychic inheritance was necessary to avoid cultural chaos and relieve the creative minds of our people. The report pointed out that there was confusion, especially among our younger people, as to what was the date of Independence and as a consequence, the observance of Independence Day was considerably weakened. Nettleford’s report said that these were two separate matters: we deserve, in the case of Emancipation Day, a commemoration, and in the case of Independence Day, a celebration. In a resolution that I brought to the House, there was an acceptance without a descending voice that Independence Day ought to be given a proper date so as to remove any doubt in the minds of our people about the timing and significance of our Independence Day.

Observer: Late last year, it came to the attention of the public that the Government was giving serious consideration to the merger of Emancipation Day and Independence Day. In response to this you said, “We cannot obscure or surrender the historic significance of our freedom from slavery, and the poll reaction is not surprising, because succeeding generations have not been taught in our educational institutions enough, or at all, about our heritage in its entirety.”

Do you think that we, as Jamaicans, do not take the day seriously, and do you blame the lack of education of historical issues as the reason?

Patterson: Yes.

Observer: What do you think can be implemented through the government or organisations to emphasise this day and its importance?

Patterson: We have to teach our children more about ourselves and less about what is the historical experience of our colonisers and our slave masters. That’s the only way we can maintain our position in the international community and you have to go further, our motto, “out of many, one people” is a reflection of our diversity, of which we have every reason to be proud. But we must never forget that the late great Sir Phillip Sherlock, who I will regard as one of our historical and cultural gurus, said in very clear terms that, yet out of many one people at the same time we have to realize the power of symbols in human behavior and the collectable lives of our people will have to be respected… symbols and observance, and themselves reflect the social and cultural patterns of behavior of our time… he said and I quote, “we must not forget that Jamaica is a predominantly black nation, the majority of its people are African origin and we have among us people who claim European heritage, and whose way of life has been enriched by the culture of Jews, Arabs, Indians, and Chinese.” So that pushed us to look at our symbols and the interpretation of it. At first, the black in our flag was interpreted as signifying hardships, change that, as too often black is a negative word. We talk about Black Friday, Blackmail, Black sheep in the family. So we changed that, we made it positive. And black in our flag represents resilience and strength in our people, we did that to encourage patriotism and national pride and all ethnic groups. We can take some pride in the fact that we have been able to work together in considerable harmony; you’re not a Jamaican from the colour of your skin, you’re a Jamaican and whatever colour you maybe you must be committed to this our island home because it is the place we have to live and work together.

Observer: Every year around this time, the words of National Hero Marcus Garvey and later reggae legend Bob Marley, “none but ourselves can free our minds,” resurface. Many Jamaicans believe that despite being rid of the shackles and humiliation of slavery our ancestors suffered through, that we are still struggling as a consequence of slavery. What role do you think the PJ Patterson Centre for Africa-Caribbean Advocacy will play in the progress we’ve made as a country toward unity, knowing our history, and receiving reparations and artifacts from the monarch since Emancipation?

Patterson: Our roles and objectives in very simple terms, we want to build a bridge between Africa and the Caribbean which reflects how we together overcome the dehumanizing experience of the Middle Passage and how we, 54 nations in Africa and 14 countries in the Caribbean can unite and make our voice heard in the international community as we seek to fashion a new world order… the world that existed in 1948 and well, the sequel to [World War I], World War II where victors took all the spoils… that time has passed. At that time, they reported to speak for us, now we are free, we are independent, and we insist on our ability to speak for ourselves and we believe that there is purpose to secure our unity and the COVID pandemic and the compelling need to revisit some of the unfair relationships in trade, and in economic development, must allow the full engagement of Africa and the Caribbean; united we stand. We at the Patterson Centre are going to do two things: 1) be a repository of the knowledge and the learning which exists within our ranks; we want to encourage people to people contact in the fields of entertainment, sports, and academic activities and we want to be able to assist the government of the region in Africa and the Caribbean in the preparation of policies which will project our interest, especially in these days of globalization. With the threat of global warming and climate change, we in the Caribbean, most of which are islands, could be wiped out entirely if global warming continues unabated. Those are things we hope to bring of assistance in the efforts to bring Africa and the Caribbean closer together. We readily accept that the determination of policies will rest with our political leaders. We hope to be somewhat of a think cap that can assist them in the formulation of these policy approaches.