Dear Editor,
During my years in elementary and high school—especially in elementary school—I attended Grand Schools (Presbyterian) on Coffee Street in San Fernando. At that young and formative age, when the mind is still developing, it should have been a time for learning and growth. Instead, Christian teachers (mostly converted Indians), beyond teaching academic subjects such as mathematics and science, took advantage of young minds and molded them to hate and feel ashamed of everything Indian and Hindu.
These Indian converts to Christianity were doing the work envisioned by Lord Macaulay and William Wilberforce. At Grand Schools, Hindus were told daily that they must become Christians or they would go to hell.
Lord Macaulay wanted an English Christian education for Hindus and Indians that would erode their religious beliefs and cultural identity, leading them to abandon their own traditions in favor of Western values. This would allow Britain to rule India for a very long time. William Wilberforce also advocated ruling India through moral and religious “uplift,” arguing for missionary access to “save” Hindus from going to hell. Both Lord Macaulay and William Wilberforce wanted the Hindu mindset to change from its Sanatan heritage and Aryan civilization so that India (Bharat) would remain a conquered nation.
In Trinidad, the arrival of Indians in 1834 consisted mostly of Hindus. The Macaulay–Wilberforce plan was put into action by first creating “Macaulay children” and using them as Christian armies to educate young Hindu minds and keep them mentally captive to serve white colonial masters.
During colonial times, Hindu schools, mandirs, and Hindu practices were outlawed. Even after independence, this colonial prejudice continued to a certain extent by denying Hindus access to Hindu schools.
In Trinidad, Hindus are seen as the protectors of Indian heritage and civilization even today, and therefore Hindus among the Indian population are often victimized.
The importance of Hindu schools cannot be overstated. They play a vital role in preserving Indian Vedic Sanatan culture by shaping Hindu minds away from the Macaulay concept of education. Hindu schools allow Indian students to appreciate their own heritage while excelling academically with Vedic cultural values. This is one of the greatest gifts that Trinidad can nurture and sustain.
SITA RAM
Vasan Ramracha