“We have tomorrow. Bright before us. Like a flame”— Langston Hughes (The Dream Keeper poem)

In this series, we have challenged patterns of democratic backsliding and identified movements towards authoritarian political cultures in Bermuda. We deliberately, and unapologetically, carry an alarmist tone about Bermuda’s democracy. Yet, as described in the first article, our claims were rooted in evidence, historical patterns and deep apprehension about the future. In this last segment, we suggest ways to combat authoritarianism. Our intention is to provide a framework and actionable steps for a brighter flame of tomorrow because the Bermuda we know may not have a tomorrow.

Robust democracies have better health outcomes, economic trajectories, social fabrics and happier families. The quality of democratic practices is, therefore, like the heart rate and blood test for a nation — representative of the things we cannot see. However, an onslaught of democratic hollowing, corruption and social degradation plagues us. Government ministers under-reported thousands of dollars in travel. Belco, a foreign-owned company with a monopolistic grip on the island, offered voluntary separation packages to “reduce operational costs” while its parent company boasted on LinkedIn of year-over-year improvements and solid financial performance.

Demographic changes on the island are deeply unsettling. A position paper from the Ministry of Economy and Labour described that “Bermudian couples do not have enough children to replace” themselves. The birthrate is low and the death rate is increasing. The median age is rising from 44.6 to 48.6, while the number of Bermudians aged 25 to 64 who sustain the workforce and pension fund is decreasing. The gasoline on this flame is that the information we don’t have promises to be as bleak as the information we do have. Britain's 2021 census listed 5,821 Bermudians as usually resident in England and Wales. In 2011, the same census listed 3,875. The numbers suggest a 50 per cent increase in the number of Bermudians living in England and Wales over ten years.

Yet, the Government still doesn’t track how many Bermudians left the island, nor has it outlined a meaningful pathway to achieve this. Similarly, the Progressive Labour Party opted for political expediency over youth enfranchisement in the 2025 General Election. Calling an election while a plethora of Bermudians abroad in pursuit of education and career development were off island outraged many, and turned off the rest. Some, however, remarked that there “is no good time to call an election” or applauded the opportunism. But we ask these groups: what are the long-term consequences of such political expediency?

Bermuda’s primary pension fund is draining, Bermuda has one of the world's oldest retirement ages, and young people have checked out of local affairs entirely during their most crucial years of life for partnering, career orientation and personal growth. Anti-youth sentiment reduces the likelihood of a college-educated Bermudian class returning for work, and consequently, the possibility of starting a Bermudian family on the island. The dynamic is worth a pause.

The Government is statistically underinformed about the depths of our population crisis — but is actively making the population crisis worse through policy and normative practices. The census date is scheduled for May 20, 2026. We are restlessly waiting, as many casually remark about how different Bermuda looks. If tomorrow is to burn bright before us like a flame in a way that inspires a new order, instead of destruction beyond repair, we argue that change must be swift and all-encompassing across both the political and social spheres, and at the personal, community and government levels.

Confronting political authoritarianism with policy

The 2025 General Election’s 54.99 per cent voter turnout was not just a sad statistic; it was a warning sign. The previous election in 2020 also saw historically low participation (about 62 per cent), indicating a dangerous trend: thousands of Bermudians, especially young, poor and disconnected citizens, have silently stepped away from our democracy. In effect, they are joining what the Black radical tradition calls the lumpenproletariat — those pushed to the edges of formal politics and treated by the powerful as disposable, criminal or beyond saving. In Bermuda, this isn’t an abstract label. It encompasses Black queer folks who face family rejection and institutional neglect; people who are homeless or housing-insecure; those unfairly branded “antisocial” or caught up in gang life; disabled people written off as burdens; and survivors of abuse expected to suffer in silence or endure a painful process in a broken system.

These are the very Bermudians our political class — on both sides of the aisle — has little language for beyond pity, policing, or moral panic. Yet if we take the lumpenproletariat seriously, as the Black radical tradition urges, then these very “outsiders” must be moved from the periphery to the centre of our political life. Their disillusionment is the canary in the coalmine of our democracy — and their potential power, if awakened, could be the force that reverses our slide towards authoritarianism. The flame of Bermuda’s tomorrow will burn bright only if every Bermudian, especially the most marginalised, is empowered to take part in our collective future.

While the responsibility to nurture this flame, and ultimately confront authoritarianism head on, does not start or end with the state, there is a crucial role that ought to be played by a government for and by the people — especially one led by a party that campaigned on building a “fairer Bermuda for us”. Over the past few years, it has become abundantly clear that our government must undertake sweeping structural reforms to make our institutions truly accountable to the people — all of the people.

Combating authoritarianism is not just about ousting one leader or winning one election; it’s about reshaping the system so that those who have been politically disenfranchised and sidelined are recognised as a constituency to be served. This requires more than town halls on local issues led by our British governor, more than endless consultations that never seem to change government policy, or yet another expensive report or committee whose recommendations go unheard. It instead demands urgent, concrete changes in how we govern and who gets to participate. This includes:

• Radical transparency and accountability, now. The time for half-measures is over — Bermuda’s government must immediately implement and enforce stronger transparency laws and anti-corruption measures. Every dollar of public funds, every official trip, every contract award should be open to scrutiny. Strengthen Pati laws, empower independent auditors and ombudsmen, and impose real penalties for misconduct. The PLP has long promised such measures even before 2017, but has yet to implement them. Sunlight is a powerful disinfectant; without it, authoritarian corruption is allowed to fester behind closed doors.

• A humbler, more responsive leadership. Our leaders must drop the thin-skinned arrogance that treats the media, the Opposition and the intelligentsia as enemies. Democratic government means answering tough questions instead of dodging them, and engaging in meaningful public debate on policy issues. It means fostering a vibrant press and an informed academic and activist community that can critique policy without being attacked or ostracised. When those in power show respect for truth tellers — rather than contempt — it becomes harder for authoritarian attitudes and practices to take root.

• Real political education for every citizen. To revive our democracy, we must educate and engage the populace continuously. This starts in our schools: the Ministry of Education must weave civic education, critical thinking and Bermuda’s own political history into curricula from an early age — including in private schools. But it does not end there. The Parliamentary Registrar and others should host regular workshops on voting rights, how Parliament works and how citizens can influence policy. Political parties themselves also need to invest in educating their members and supporters beyond partisan slogans. It is rather embarrassing that this doesn’t already happen, and even more so because it shows in the calibre of candidates these past two election cycles. So let’s imagine party meetings that teach people how to draft a policy proposal or understand a budget, rather than just rallying sycophantic cheerleaders. An informed electorate is an empowered electorate — a key antidote to reducing political apathy and manipulation.

• Electoral reforms to broaden participation. We should not be afraid to rethink the rules of our political system to make it more democratic. For instance, reducing the stranglehold of party-line voting in Parliament would allow MPs to vote their conscience and truly represent their constituents, rather than just toeing the party hierarchy’s line. Introducing citizen-initiated ballot initiatives or referendums at each General Election could give the public a direct voice on key issues, engaging voters who might otherwise stay home. Even the structure of our Senate should be revisited — could we incorporate elected voices to widen the range of perspectives? The goal must be to depolarise and “de-elitify” our politics: make it easier for independents and new movements to gain a foothold, and harder for any one party to monopolise power or shut out dissenting views.

• Protecting political freedom in the workplace. In a small island where the Government is the single largest employer — and international business the largest private employer — too many Bermudians feel they must choose between their livelihood and their political voice. This is unacceptable in a democracy. We need laws and norms that safeguard civil servants’ and private-sector employees’ right to political participation. Why should a public school teacher or a government clerk be effectively barred from running for office or even attending a rally owing to conflict-of-interest rules? Such policies, however intended, have the effect of politically neutering a huge segment of our population, not to mention that these policies were established to prevent Black working-class Bermudians from accessing political power. Likewise, no one in the corporate world should fear firing or blacklisting for being outspoken on social issues. Our leaders ought to clarify and expand protections for workers who engage in politics or blow the whistle on wrongdoing. Freedom of association and expression cannot be left at the office door — not if we aim to build a resilient democracy.

If proposed reforms in Bermuda reinforce the status quo and enable the present political elite, our issues will metastasise. In that case, Bermuda’s slide into apathy and authoritarianism would continue beneath a veneer of business as usual and, one day, intervention may not be possible. But if proposed changes instead widen the doorway for the least-heard Bermudians — like the ones above seek to do — to step forward and actively shape our island’s future, then something awe-inspiring could happen. Bermuda’s lumpenproletariat, once dismissed, can become what it has always had the potential to be: the engine of a genuinely democratic tomorrow. It’s up to all of us as individuals and communities to make that a reality and dare to invent the future. By any means necessary. Boldly.

Thus, the next and final article in this series will explore the role of Bermudian social fabrics in combating social authoritarianism, offering recommendations for individual citizens and civil society.

• Taj Donville-Outerbridge and Tierrai Tull represent Bermuda Youth Connect. Taj is an award-winning Bermudian human rights activist, writer and student studying a double masters of public administration and global affairs at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He also has a decade of involvement in Bermuda’s political system under his belt. He can be reached via Instagram @_king.taj_ and e-mail at tdonvilleouterbridge@yahoo.com. Tierrai is the founder of Bermuda Youth Connect, studying at Oxford in the Department of Politics and International Relations on the Rhodes Scholarship