No democracy without democrats

THE EDITOR, Sir:

A GENERAL lack of democratic and progressive consciousness is at the root of most of Jamaica's socio-political problems. Obviously, consciousness doesn't exist in a vacuum, it clearly interacts with material realities. My position, then, is based on the fact that material improvements can, and very often do, occur without a concomitant change in consciousness.

I think, that violence and a lack of democracy bordering on fascism are endemic to the Jamaican national consciousness; and that any attempts to make the country better over the long term must address this fact first, or run the risk of being a prescription for 'more of the same'.

In the interest of brevity, I won't bother to lay out the whole mountain of evidence for my case. We need only look at the thoughtlessness and violence present, and in fact, expected, in your casual everyday relationships, with other drivers, for example. Think about the reaction to people, like gays for example, who differ from the norm, in Jamaican popular culture.

Think about the classism, sexism and, still, racism, which inform all of our interaction.

We are, in essence, a feudal society; we've not even reached the quite flawed consciousness typical of the capitalist system of political economy.

There can be no democracy without democrats, and there can be no violence without violators; and until we become democrats and non-violators, it's no use instituting ameliorative policy which expects us to act like it.

I am etc.,

OMAR FRANCIS

omarfromsoulcase@hotmail.com

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