By Arley Salimbi Gill

On Tuesday, May 23, 2023, the Grenada National Reparations Committee held its third annual reparations lecture. The theme for this year’s lecture was— “Republicanism in the Age of Reparations’’. The keynote speaker for the event was the Honourable Dr. Francis Alexis.

Dr. Alexis is known locally, regionally and globally as a reputable constitutional scholar and veteran politician and statesman. He is a national treasure and should be one of the many Grenadians memorialised by naming a public space in honour of his innumerable contributions to Grenadian and Caribbean civilisation.

In delivering his May 23 lecture, Dr. Alexis took his audience on a well-curated historical journey, tracking the role of the monarchy from the1600s to present-day Europe; a journey that reminded us of Britain’s and Europe’s role in Indigenous People’s genocide, African slavery, and colonialism. He discussed ways in which monarchical rule shaped the political, economic and judicial landscape in the British Caribbean, and amplified the importance of understanding the legal opportunities and challenges we must confront on the way to true political independence and reparatory justice for slavery and colonialism.

As the Grenada National Reparations Committee (GNRC) continues its pursuit for reparatory justice—Dr. Alexis provided us with more than enough food for thought. He admonished us to, “think outside of the box!”. But what exactly does thinking outside of the box mean for us Grenadians?

Specifically, it means breaking free from the Privy Council as the final court of appeal; it means becoming comfortable with knowing that there will be a generation of Grenadians that will never know a Governor General as the king’s representative on island. What we will become accustomed to, is, the “President of Grenada’’.  I encourage us to normalise saying, “President of Grenada’’.

Thinking outside of the box will require each of us to shed the colonial trappings that continue to keep us bound to the monarchy, and by extension, to Europe.

For centuries, we have been thinking “inside” of the box. A box built to keep people in the British colonies complacent and content with colonial control. “Inside-of-the-box” thinking, I believe, blocks our view and blurs our vision to the exploitation and extraction that took place on our island for hundreds of years.

Furthermore, thinking inside of the box made us less aware of our dependence on Europe for solutions, and for expecting Britain to rescue our islands from current political, social, environmental and economic problems—problems that are as a result of centuries of intentional underdevelopment.

Dr. Alexis skillfully draws parallels between our collective past, marred by conquest, plunder and genocide, and our current reality—underdevelopment marked by extraction of natural resources, social neglect and economic dependence, and an overreliance on foreign aid to support our most basic needs.

From our obstructed view inside the box, we believe that our rich African culture and traditions—including our foods, our clothing, our names and dances—are inferior to the culture that was forced upon us. British colonial rulers named our villages, our parishes—we are living in a world, developed by our colonisers for us. Breaking free from this colonial trap requires us to reclaim our spaces— name our schools and other public spaces after people that have made meaningful contributions to our society.

So, as we discuss ways to remove ourselves from under the weight of the monarchy as head of state in Grenada, Dr. Alexis reminded us of what is at stake for Grenadians—working for reparatory justice.

Firstly, we must recognize the work of our Rastafari community by bringing Rastafari leaders more directly and prominently into mainstream discussions on reparations. As a matter of fact, the issue of reparations and repatriation are central tenets of the Rastafari faith.  For decades, the Rastafari community has been educating the general public on the importance of claiming our African identity as descendants of Africans and of fully embracing that identity, if we are serious about cutting the symbolic, and proverbial, navel string with Britain.

As an almost fifty-year-old nation, we—the people of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique—must be able to stand on our own two feet, speak for ourselves, and make our own economic, political and judicial decisions, without being under the perpetual gaze of a colonial overseer.

Secondly, gaining true political freedom would mean once-and-for-all, getting rid of bipartisan politics and addressing republicanism as a national issue. As Dr. Alexis admonished us to, “think outside of the box” as Grenadians, we must come together, as one people, and imagine what a national effort to achieve true political independence would look like. We must also be prepared to have open, honest and serious conversations on our hopes—and fears—about what it would mean to be a republic.

Thirdly, as Dr. Alexis pointed out, there is a glaring contradiction that, we, as a people, must address— and that is, it is inconceivable to maintain a link to monarchism in the age of reparatory justice. During his lecture, he encouraged us to ponder this question: what would be the likely outcome, if former British colonies brought a case against Britain to the Privy Council, charging Britain with genocide and crimes against humanity? Slavery profiteers maintain that slavery was illegal in Britain but legal in British colonies at the time. Would the Privy Council even accept the case?

Lastly, as we move forward with our efforts to secure reparatory justice, let us do so, guided by the clear-eyed vision of the Rastafari community, and the wisdom of Dr. Francis Alexis, “that we must be ready to think outside of the box”; and must also earnestly consider the prophetic words of the late Marcus Mosiah Garvey— “we are going to emancipate ourselves from mental slavery, for though others may free the body, none but ourselves can free the mind.”

The Grenada National Reparations Committee invites everyone to be part of this important reparatory justice journey. Let us demand justice for our ancestors, break free from the legacies of colonialism, and work together to achieve true economic and political independence.

And, as Dr. Alexis quoted in his lecture, Emperor Haile Selassie reminded us that: “We know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil.’’

Note: The opinion expressed are that of the author and not necessary of Spiceislander.com