At a time when culture is being discussed and promoted, when aspects of it are being described as high or low and analysed in some detail, there seems to have been a muted appreciation of the cultural significance of the rum shop.
One cannot seriously argue that the rum shop is not part of our culture, because the still ubiquitous nature of the institution speaks volumes for its place in times past at the very heart of our communities.
It is therefore pleasing that within very recent months there has been an attempt to ensure that this vital part of our culture is not lost in the rush to adopt foreign influences inimical to the preservation of some important local institutions.
We therefore applaud the effort of those who have joined forces to establish the Bajan Association of Rum Shops, appropriately known by the acronym BARS. So far, 349 rum shops have become members of the body. The association, formed earlier this year, aims to keep the tradition of the rum shop alive and well and the focus is to preserve this aspect of our culture by promoting activities which would expose the Bajan rum shop internationally and to those tourists who come to our shores.
Such exposure, which might mean increased patronage, could help significantly in the survival process.
But how culturally and historically important the rum shop was may be gleaned from the fact that very often the rum shop and the village shop were part and parcel of the same physical space, and that for many decades in the underdeveloped days of our country, credit obtained at the village shop provided the platform for survival of many thousands of Barbadian families.
It would be interesting if one could calculate the significance of the “profits” earned by the rum shop which went into silent support of the operations of the village shop side of the establishment’s operations.
things are not the same, and while the village shop has not been as successful a survivor of changing times – given the cultural penetration by the supermarkets and the minimarts – the rum shop has been able to hold its own even in the face of increasing competition from the many other watering holes and entertainment bars which have seen the light of day in the past three decades.
It is commendable that BARS has set as a major objective the promotion of responsible drinking, because it is not good for any nation to have its citizens maimed or otherwise disabled by collisions caused by drink-drivers. Recognition of the benefits to be derived from any rum shop revival programme must not obscure possible disadvantages of irresponsible drivers.
Founder of BARS, Mr Franklyn Parris, was quoted as saying that the rum shop was a meeting point for Barbadian society for half a century and was too important to fail.
It would be difficult to disagree with these sentiments and we can only hope that in an era when we have begun to understand the import of cultural and heritage tourism that BARS survives, prospers and grows and safeguards what is a most import aspect of our cultural heritage.
