YESTERDAY, JULY 26, marked 73 years since the outbreak of the ground-breaking 1937 rebellion in Barbados and it culminated four days later on July 29.
This rebellion should be seen as part of an extended working-class struggle in the post-Emancipation era throughout the British West Indies.
Whenever exploitation has reared its ugly head, the working class people of the region protested in a range of ways.
The 1937 rebellion was triggered by the deportation of Clement Payne, who was a key political activist and inspiration to the Afro-Barbadian working class.
The masses vented their anger by destroying public and private property throughout Bridgetown and its environs.
Soon there were intense engagements with the police who served as the pawns of the local white oligarchy.
A one-hour battle at Golden Square resulted in several police being wounded.
This sustained effort was supported by a group of women and children who supplied stones – the Bajan weapon of choice – and before long the police were overwhelmed and were forced to retreat.
Clashes also occurred at Suttle Street and Collymore Rock.The following day, July 27, unrest started again when a large crowd gathered on the wharf.
Using sticks and stones, they invaded Broad Street, smashing stores there, including Whitfields, the City Pharmacy and the Ideal Store.
However, not every store was targeted by the rebels. David Browne indicates that during the two days of working-class rebellion in Bridgetown, some stores were spared and even defended, which suggested that the rebels were motivated by notions of justice.
For instance, when one rebel attempted to break one of Fogarty’s windows, a crowd held him back and yelled: “Leave Fogarty! He does give we a break.”
The reason for this apparent inconsistency was that Fogarty’s store was well known to the black population as a bargain centre, especially for cheap cloth which enabled many poor Blacks to afford a “Sunday best”.
The rebellion soon spread to the rural areas. A crowd of 400 people raided sweet potatoes at Golden Grove Estate in St George.
On July 28, a crowd of about 200 raided the potato fields of Clifton Hall Estate in St John. Eventually, the black masses engaged in the routine plunder of several estate owners who they perceived were exploiting them.
There were several causes of the rebellion and the deportation of Payne was merely the catalyst. Other significant causes were the abysmal economic conditions, poor wages, high unemployment and horrific social conditions such as housing and health care, which was exacerbated by the Great Depression.
These conditions were allowed to persist principally because of a limited franchise and virtually no trade unionism.The 1937 rebellion in Barbados was truly a watershed moment in our history.
Although 14 people were killed, their efforts were not in vain.
The rebels penetrated the hold of the ruling oligarchy, [who] with their backs against the wall extended the franchise in 1943 and commenced a series of political and social changes.
This included the introduction of minimum wage and trade union legislation. The legacy of this rebellion is instructive.
It shows what people who were, and to some degree are still, regarded as passive are capable of. In the face of overwhelming obstacles, the working class was able to rise and organise in order to secure long overdue rights.
People should reflect on this episode and realise how easily oppression can gain residence in our lives without us even realising it.
Today, Barbadians enjoy a far improved standard of living, but this does not mean that there is no exploitation.
Perhaps if we were to spend less time “gine dung” we could understand the frightening parallel of the conditions of the 1930s to those of the present.
In the words of C.L.R. James, the price of liberty is still eternal vigilance.
OLIVER THOMAS
