The recent passing of the iconic and the Hon. Dame Lois Marie Browne-Evans DBE JP MP — in addition to eliciting all the predictable emotions of sadness, gratitude, pride and fond remembrance — presented a valuable opportunity to reflect. Upon returning briefly to Bermuda to attend the entirely fitting and well-organised celebration of “The Dame’s” life, legacy and contributions, I felt a strong compulsion to do all that I could to encourage a truly contextua> discussion of the life of this undoubtedly accomplished daughter of the Bermudian soil. I spent a very stimulating day talking with Shirley Dill of VSB Radio and with “Miss Thang”, Christie Burgess, of Hott 107.5.

By “truly contextual”, I mean to say that while all the great things — and there were many — which were said about Dame Lois in the days following her sudden departure were undoubtedly both true and well deserved, her myriad accomplishments needed, for the sake of our children and our children’s children, to be put in the true context of what the great lady stood for throughout her life.

Yes, Dame Lois was a leader, indeed a founder, architect and builder of both the Bermudian Labour Movement and the Progressive Labour Party. And yes, the Dame was a giant in the struggle for social and economic justice, for respect for fundamental human rights, for the establishment of a fair and equitable system of criminal justice, and for full constitutional Independence for Bermuda (as to which this newspaper’s description of her as “Mother of the Nation” and the draping of the Union Jack on her casket must be regarded as somewhat bittersweet ironies.)

Ultimately, however, (and this was undoubtedly the true foundation for all that Dame Lois was motivated to do throughout her very full life) The Dame was an implacable foe, a warrior of Boadicean dimensions, against the doctrine, principles and philosophy of “white supremacy”. She was determined to dismantle white supremacy in Bermuda and make Bermuda a shining example of true racial harmony.

Before some of you launch into the usual kneejerk accusation of “playing the race card”, itself one of the main tools of White Supremacists, and the usual kneejerk lament that some of us just won’t “let bygones be bygones”, that we are “living in the past” or that this writing is just another attempt to secure political points by fomenting racial hatred and division, let me say that this tactic does not work with me; and it never worked with Dame Lois. She was undeterred to the end. It may have been the Berkeley Institute motto (“Respice Finem”, or “Keep the End in View”) to which many of us were exposed and which some of us actually took to hear. Apart, perhaps, from my good friend and former teacher Dr. Eva Hodgson, Dame Lois was pre-eminent in her scholarship and understanding of the workings of racism and the methods of white supremacy. She was a fully committed and commissioned general and warrior in the Bermudian struggle against racism. And she knew that the struggle against white supremacy had to be seen for what it is: as a science.

Serious readers of this piece would do well to try to obtain a copy (try, as I successfully did, to order a copy from amazon.com) of the highly regarded publication of Neely Fuller Jr. dealing with historic establishment, maintenance, expansion and refinement of the doctrine of white supremacy.

Bermuda, like most of the rest of western civilisation, was founded and continues, despite significant political change, to be founded on white supremacy.

Those who are truly committed against white supremacy are equally committed to all of humanity, regardless of race or ethnicity. To suggest the contrary, as do many white supremacists and their unwitting black apologists, would be utterly false.

And by the same token, while many of those who are fully engaged in the struggle against white supremacy are of African and non-white origin, a vast number are Caucasians themselves.

Dame Lois knew this, which is why her love and regard for the likes of former PLP Member of Parliament Dorothy Thompson, BIU organiser and MP Dr. Barbara Ball and the late Worker’s Voice Editor Doreen Lightbourne (all “white” people who, like the Dame, suffered and sacrificed much in the struggle) were maintained in her heart to the grave.

It was manifest by the turnout in honour of Dame Lois that by the time of her death, many had come to finally realise that the struggle against white supremacy in Bermuda did not in any way import a dislike or disrespect of, or hatred towards, white people. Indeed, many within the “white community” of Bermuda (a phrase which I dislike, but which will have to suffice for the moment) have openly attested to the Dame’s manifest and obvious love for all of Bermuda and the genuine respect which she extended to all, regardless of race, creed or colour. Like many of us, she experienced time and again the frustration of watching so many white (and, in recent years, black Bermudians) refusing to engage in open frank and honest discussion of the issue of race and its place in our social system.

As it truly was the pernicious, destructive and centuries-old doctrine of white supremacy against which the Dame fought valiantly and tirelessly for the entirety of her life, it would, I think, be her greatest wish that those of us who can would pass on to our children a true appreciation and understanding of the history of Bermuda and, more particularly, the very negative effect which the doctrine of white supremacy has had on all our people, black and white alike.

The notion that one race is superior to the other in its ability to produce true leaders, in its capacity for integrity and character, in its ability to organise and administer (the so-called ̶B>competence<$>” issue), is simply and fundamentally wrong.

Yet, white supremacy has prevailed — sometimes consciously and sometimes unconsciously — in the psyches of whites and non-whites for centuries. It is this doctrine which created and generated for centuries, with the full support of organised religion, an entire industry based on the trade in human flesh and slave labour out of Africa. And yes, having regard to the Dame’s lifelong struggle — alas, unfulfilled in her lifetime — for national Independence for Bermuda, let us remember that The Struggle goes on, occasionally deflected, but never irrelevant and never to be abandoned. Indeed, we would do her memory and her legacy true justice by renewing in earnest the quest for full self-determination on the part of the Bermudian people and by making a renewed commitment to study and discuss the issue of race with honesty and candour and with a true determination to make Bermuda the harmonious and just society which we deserve to become.

Again we would do well to remember that white supremacy is the very doctrine which fostered and encouraged colonialism, the economic rape of the entire African continent and of the Indian subcontinent and the virtual genocide of tribe after tribe of ancient and honourable native American “Indians”.

In the Bermudian context, white supremacy has truly affected and diminished all of us. It has held us all back.

We need to beware the overuse and misapplication of words like “stability”; as in Governor Sir John Vereker’s recent reported speech at Government House last week, headlined in this newspaper as “Stability and integrity — that’s what I stand for”. Let’s just say at this stage that white supremacy has historically used many devices to maintain “stability”; by which they really mean keeping injustice intact and avoiding, at all costs, change; even positive change. And then there is the use of the word “integrity”; sometimes consciously, sometimes inadvertently reinforcement of the notion that white leaders have integrity, while blacks do not. Of course, precisely what is in the Governor’s heart is known only by him and it is not for me or anyone else to say. I say only at this stage that white supremacy has systematically imbued nonwhites — happily not this one — with the burden of perceived inferiority, incompetence and lack of character. From where I sit, and based on what I have seen and heard of this particular Governor’s tenure, His Excellency could be confusing “stability” with either standing still in the face of an urgent need for change or, worse, reversing the colonial clock at the expense of true Bermudian aspirations for self-determination. And by “integrity”, well again I say that the first principle of white supremacy is the notion that black leadership is bereft of integrity, character and probity. Maybe His Excellency just cannot help it; and that is about as charitable I can be at this time.

The truth is that some white Bermudians and, perhaps a greater number of black Bermudians, consciously believe in the superiority of the white race. As I have said, the assumptions that accompany the doctrine of white supremacy primarily embrace the belief that black leaders are inherently and inevitably “corrupt”. How else can I explain the specious and convoluted arguments of Christian Dunleavy and Sen. Bob Richards (UBP) in their recent contributions in the Royal Gazette?.Mr Richards says that: “By hiding behind the shield of “No laws were broken”, the Cabinet Ministers in question place themselves in the same boat as Bermudian segregationists , the very people they love to loathe.”

Well, Bob, according to the Director of Public Prosecutions and her senior consultant Mr. Kulandra Ratneser QC, no laws were broken. You appear disappointed. And while I certainly agree that Bermuda needs to make a full review of its corruption laws, and there are hardly any — thanks to the “Bermudian segregationists” who wielded power and gained massive economic influence both interchangeably and symbiotically, shouldn’t you be loathing that mentality as well? Or would you prefer, like some of your forebears, to carry the burden of becoming their chief apologist? And if you are going to be an apologist, come up with something a little more profound and meaningful than: “Due to the heavier responsibility that leadership demands, Cabinet Ministers should always be mindful that their words and actions must not only be within the parameters of the law, but always be within the principles of the foundation upon which the law is built.”

That, Sir — with the greatest of respect — is an utterly meaningless phrase. The “principles of the foundation upon which the law is built”? What on earth are you talking about, Bob?

One form of financial administration, when engaged in by whites, was regarded as prudent business practice, true public service even ; while precisely the same activity, if performed by an African-Bermudian, is portrayed as “corruption” or “theft” or “fraud”. “Ripping us off,” says Mr. Dunleavy, who is clearly so blinded by his own hatred that taking his invective seriously would be foolhardy to say the least.

The various effects of the doctrine of white supremacy on all of us has included anger, alienation, self-hate, prejudice, incohesion as a community, and a failure to appreciate the viewpoint of the “other side” and the need to foster a true sense of community compromise. If we are not careful, there will be real social unrest — and we may not survive.

And so it is that recent events in this community, in particular the so-called “Bermuda Housing Corporation scandal” and, for me, the true “scandal” of the leaking of confidential police and DPP files to the public media, have stimulated in many of us a renewed sense of commitment to justice and truth in Bermuda.

I say again that we may be in for a very rough ride.

I would like to believe that, thanks to the contributions of the likes of Dame Lois Browne-Evans, we are as a community smarter and more discerning of the truth than the local establishment propaganda machines and apologists appear to suppose. But the Dame, who was well-known for her habit of using every opportunity to “take us down memory lane” knew of the importance of the proposition that “those who do not know and appreciate their history may be condemned to repeat it.”

Speaking only for myself, I have been utterly disgusted by the handling so far of the entire “BHC scandal” story and the grossly unfair impact which media conduct has had on the lives and characters of a number of our more dedicated black community leaders. Make no mistake, this is an intentional, sustained, carefully orchestrated, clever — but ultimately transparent — exercise in character assassination on a scale hitherto untried. Death by a thousand cuts.

I dedicate this Op-Ed piece to the memory of the Hon. Dame Lois Browne-Evans, who taught me so much. May she rest in peace.

This is part one of a two-part article.