Dear Sir,

Joe Wakefield (RG, August 11) contends that “propagandists try to divide ... the public”. But surely he knows that the Bermudian public have never been anything but divided from its inception.

First there was slave and slaveholder (what greater divide?) — black and white. Then in 1834, at emancipation, the political and economically powerful representatives of the white community determined that the black-white divide must continue through racism, segregation and economic exclusion of the erstwhile black slave so that the slave status of the former slaves would change as little as possible.

As a result, today we continue to be divided into a black-white, two-tiered society without any help from propagandists.

Certainly, I believe that a majority black population that continues to feel the negative impact of those racist policies would fare much better if it had a government that represented its interests — not merely being black.

It is obvious that there are blacks in the OBA who are representing the interest of the white community, so merely being black would do us no good.

The individuals must be prepared to actually represent the interests of those on the lower tier of this black-white society with courage and integrity.

EVA N. HODGSON