Dear Editor,
I write to correct Mr Jamil Changlee’s misunderstanding and misrepresentation of the exchange between Mr Hamilton Green and myself on the Indian Immigrant Fund and to address the issue of a national cultural center as appealed in an article he penned (Nov 26 SN).
The disagreement between Hamilton Green and myself has nothing to do with culture and a cultural center. It is about funding of the National Cultural Center. Funding came from the Indian Immigrant Fund, which Green disputes but offers no evidence to support his claim. Gem Madoo in an article in SN in 2023 said the NCC was constructed from the IIF, which supports my contention.
On national culture, Changlee writes that “disagreement can be ameliorated through a cohesive display of our six cultures”. I cannot disagree. The key is: equitable showcase and support of all cultures, not forced embracing of other cultures, not fusion of all into one culture in which groups are coerced into abandon their culture because theirs is not western or of the dominant group and in the process loses ancient, historical, civilizational practices. There cannot be one culture for all groups in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, multi-cultural society as we are not one people. We are different people, each with its own culture. Each group must be allowed to retain its culture as in America, a cultural mosaic, not foisted cultural fusion to abandon your ancestral culture. It is a fact that Africans lost much of their culture and have been making efforts to restore practices. Indians and Africans were forced to abandon their mother tongue and cultural religious practices for economic survival. It is a fact that many Indians were forced to convert to European faiths for state employment and or job promotion. Those kinds of coercive acts must never be allowed again.
There must be respect for and equity for all cultures as in America, India, Canada, and elsewhere. No culture (that of one group) should dominate and no group should be coerced to embrace the culture of another group; cultural diffusion is fine but not cultural imposition as took place during the period of the dictatorship (1966-92) and colonial rule.
Our history from colonialism till recently, has been that in which one culture dominated and imposed its practices on other groups amidst resistance from the out groups. Cultural domination never fully succeeded and the dominant group was always despised resulting in ethnic conflict; it was always resisted quietly if not publicly. There was always ethnic tensions and disunity in our society because of cultural imposition and political dominance. The indentured Indians quietly resisted cultural creolization from 1838 till today. Indians resisted state imposed creolization during the dictatorship.
History has shown that cultural dominance or genocide cannot and will never will be allowed to fully succeed by non-subscribing groups. Embracing one’s ethnic culture is key to identity. Efforts to impose an alien culture on a people was and still is met with resistance by virtually all groups in Guyana and elsewhere. Indo and Afro Guyanese in North America have not abandoned their unique culture. No effort has been made by the American state to impose a culture on any group. Traditional Hindu and Islamic practices have been transplanted in North America and Europe from Guyana, Trinidad and Suriname and have become institutionalized. The American government has not coerced the hundreds of ethnic groups that make USA their home to abandon their culture and impose a national culture or a fusion culture. There is cultural autonomy in USA. Groups may or may not embrace American festivals. Guyana must have similar cultural autonomy.
I support the idea of a national cultural center but not for the government to impose its will on people. Almost all countries have a national cultural center funded by the state. They also have regional cultural centers. In America, for example, there is the national cultural center in the capital Washington DC and one in every city and state. In New York City, every borough has its own cultural center. Many ethnic groups (Jews, Italians, Irish, Greeks, South Asian Indians, etc.) have their own cultural center. Indo and Afro Guyanese rent from them. In Guyana, Indians wanted to built cultural centers in different parts of Guyana during the early 1970s, but the authoritarian government confiscated their funds making it almost impossible to realize their objectives. The state owes the Indian community regional cultural centers because it confiscated their money.
Changlee supports a national cultural center in Georgetown because “it is close to the Presidential office and it can carry out its cultural agenda”. No government should have a cultural agenda to impose on people. Each group must have its own agenda and propagate its own culture, not instructed by the state. The national cultural center must reflect the culture of the diverse groups; an illustration is the cultural program at the state dinner for Prime Minister Modi that showcased all the cultures. America and Canada don’t have national cultural agendas that instruct Guyanese what culture to embrace. State cultural programs in Washington reflect various groups where practical. Same in NYS and NYC.
It must be noted that the location of NCC does not make for easy access to most of the population. People away from Georgetown cannot gain easy access. Also, the design and architecture does not reflect or relate to the various groups. As Changlee himself writes, “the NCC does not display the six cultures of Guyana”. Indian culture is marginalized although funding for the center was provided by Indian Immigrant Fund.
Changlee states that if separate cultural centers are required, then there should be one for each ethnic group. I agree! But that cannot suffice or bring people together. There must be regional cultural centers (West Coast, East Coast, West Berbice, Central Corentyne, Upper Corentyne, Anna Regina, among others) that are accessible to each group not far from their communities to host or display their respective cultural activities. We must also appreciate each other’s culture and not seek to eliminate or denigrate the others or foist ours on them as has happened throughout our history.
Yours sincerely,
Vishnu Bisram
