Senate president Carol Ann Bassett has called for unifying talks between blacks and whites to heal Bermuda’s racial tensions.

Drawing on her family’s personal experiences of racism, Ms Bassett delivered an impassioned speech to the Upper House, declaring herself encouraged by the highly charged demonstrations of last week.

Such actions allow for the release of toxic pressure that has been threatening to explode for generations, Ms Bassett said.

“We are so divided by racial lines,” she said, before quoting Bob Marley. “He who feels it, knows it.”

Ms Bassett continued: “When the people of colour in Bermuda come together and show their displeasure at not being heard, there’s so much under that we don’t understand. If you haven’t lived it, you don’t know it.”

She said she grew up in the knowledge that her father had worked as an entertainer in hotels that her mother was not allowed to go inside, while her 91-year-old aunt was a brilliant woman who was held back by a glass ceiling. Her aunt was a staunch protester last week, she said.

“Being raised on those stories, that anger and that hurt that comes from that, what I see and what I felt, in the last week there’s so much healing in our community that needs to take place,” she said.

And although she said there may be encouraging economic signs, for many people that is not their reality, as they do not see themselves as “getting a piece of that pie”.

“What I really, really witnessed and what encouraged me in the midst of all that is there has to be that clearing, that bubbling up, of all that poison,” she said.

“We have to come to a point where we can march, where we can protest, where we can air what we feel at the core level because if we don’t this island is going to explode.

“We came close to that. We haven’t even been able to clear out that stuff that being institutionalised instilled in generations.”

Talking about such issues in a gentle manner is not enough, she continued.

She said the protesters were observing on the proposed immigration reform: “This is our home. You are not going to do this in our home without saying we have a place at the table.”

Ms Bassett continued: “This economy is more than just an economy. It’s people. If we can’t hear and we can’t listen to what people are saying, even if it’s just a small group of people ...

“Bermuda needs to get to that point where we can get around the table and be honest about what we really feel. The conversation of whites only, and the conversation of blacks only, is totally different.

“Until we can get that unity in our community, where we can be real about what we are really, really feeling — that anger, that hurt, that resentment is real; it’s real, it’s real people that are feeling that anger.

“It’s about having that honest conversation with each other. It’s about surrounding ourselves not just with the people who are like us but opening up our ears and our hearts to hear the different things that are being said.

“As long as we continue to butt heads, beat each other up about who did what, there are people out there who are hurting who say, ‘I can’t look at them to hope.’

“I encourage my Bermudians to continue to stand for what we believe. Continue to express yourself. Continue to be in order as you express yourself. Continue to know that when you do it in the right mode, love does not fail.

“We need more of that airing of that stuff so we as a community can heal.”

Earlier during the general economic debate, independent senator James Jardine emphasised the importance of population growth as Bermuda tries to get its fragile economy back on track.

“A stagnating population will likely result in a stagnating economy,” Mr Jardine told the Upper House. “We have to do something about our demographics. It’s all very well to talk about increased immigration and bringing back young Bermudians, but, if there are not jobs here, why would anyone want to come back?”

Mr Jardine outlined a number of stark economic realities in Bermuda, including its small size, lack of natural resources, ageing population, outside economic pressures, more than $2 billion of debt and further liabilities.

He quoted David Burt, the Shadow Minister of Finance, who said during his Budget response that Bermuda needs to attract investment and jobs, as well as identifying new opportunities for economic diversification.

One Bermuda Alliance senator Lynne Woolridge spoke of the lingering threat of public sector job losses.

Mrs Woolridge pointed to job freezes, pay decreases and job losses in the private sphere, which have not been replicated in government.

“Certainly, that’s something that does have to be taken into account,” she said. “There are some in the private sector who feel that public servants should feel some of the [same] pain as those in the private sector.”

Noting previous protests over furlough days in the public sector, Mrs Woolridge added: “Who champions those in the private sector when they face those same dilemmas?”

Reflecting on discontent about social difficulties under the OBA, Mrs Woolridge also said that unemployment and underemployment have been around for generations, not just for the past few years.

OBA senator Jeff Baron noted that in past years, the Government has not been able to support charities to the extent that it would like owing to the economic challenges, but that the Cabinet was working to find creative solutions to help.

He also noted comments by economist Craig Simmons, saying that while the lecturer has often criticised the Government’s financial decisions, he had offered some praise for the 2016-17 Budget.

Government senator Vic Ball, meanwhile, said the two-track strategy was putting Bermuda in the right direction, averting a debt crisis and tackling the issue of debt, noting that last year’s fiscal targets were met or exceeded.

He said that increased home sales was a sign that the economic outlook is improving. While he said Bermuda is experiencing international and local “headwinds”, the greatest headwind is the deficit.

“If we are downgraded, the international businesses that are based here will also be downgraded,” he said.

Mr Ball said he agrees that a bipartisan approach to immigration reform was needed, praising Michael Dunkley, the Premier, for listening to the concerned segment of the population.

“If we can all begin to work together and recognise that we are together, then Bermuda can reach the heights that it deserves to reach,” he said. “We are all in this together. The Government, the Opposition and the people.”

Independent senator Joan Dillas-Wright said it is imperative for everyone to speak on an issue as important as the Budget, adding that the economy needs tweaking because of the burden of debt.

She expressed concern about the less fortunate members of the public, particularly seniors who are struggling to get through the “short-term sacrifices” put in place by the Government, given the high cost of food and healthcare.

Ms Dillas-Wright said the island needs to take a closer look at health issues, such as placing a greater emphasis on home care and encouraging healthy lifestyles.

While she said she was disappointed not to see an increase in pensions, she was pleased to hear from the finance minister that an actuarial review is being carried out that could lead to a boost for the island’s seniors.

The senator also expressed concerns about the level of unemployment and the emigration of Bermudians.

Continuing the debate, Georgia Marshall, of the OBA, attacked the financial record of the Progressive Labour Party, saying that finance minister Bob Richards was walking a tightrope between competing interests with the Budget.

“It does look like we are moving in a positive direction and that’s good for the community as a whole,” she said. “But we still have a massive problem. Our problem is our national debt.”

Mrs Marshall also took issue with finger-pointing from the Opposition. “I ask the PLP, what did you do for these people,” she said. “If they feel disenfranchised, it’s because you disenfranchised them.

“I would suggest that their anger not be directed to the OBA because we are doing the best we can.”

She said Bermuda needs to retain the people it has and make them feel like part of the community, “not that they are hated and spat upon and told to go home”.

Mrs Marshall added that economic recovery is not going to happen if Bermuda is seen worldwide as “a place of unrest, a place that does not welcome people who are not from this land; that is counterproductive”.