March 11, 2012

Dear Sir,

The outrage being expressed at the suggestion that Mr Cannonier is the leader of the OBA because he is black seems hypocritical to me since the OBA only exists because the former UBP decided “to play” the race card. They decided that no matter how much they charged the LP with corruption, blacks were not going to join the UBP in sufficient numbers to take the Government. So they have called themselves the OBA and just as some blacks joined the UBP some have joined the OBA. But in what way, besides race, is Mr Cannonier a more desirable political candidate for leader than John Barritt? No one seems to be suggesting that race is the only attribute of Mr Cannonier, but you do not put a white face on a party that UBPers have joined in order to get black votes. I stress that the UBPers were ”playing” the race card because not every reference to race is “playing” as long as there is this enormous disparity between the black and white communities which most whites seem to want to retain and most blacks are willing to accept. So let us not be so hypocritical as to pretend that to suggest that the OBA needed a black face and Mr Cannonier meets the requirement is either an insult or an outrage.

EVA N HODGSON