Confronting ethnic perceptions and stereotypes

CONTINUING with my candid, and some say abrasive, commentaries from the previous columns on perceptions held by one major ethnic group of the other, many Indo-Trinidadians have assigned certain socio-cultural characteristics to Afro-Trinidadians as an undifferentiated group.

The latter are perceived to be lazy, indolent and continuously seeking handouts and will only engage in productive work through sheer necessity. Clearly this stereotype may be applicable only to a segment of the Afro-Trinidadian population.

Moreover, many may hold the view that much the same can be said of a sector of the present Indo- Trinidadian generation who are now feverishly chasing Cepep jobs and State assistance. The erosion of the work ethic has without doubt crossed ethnic boundaries.

Many Indo-Trinidadians believe that when Afro-Trinidadians do seek employment, they produce minimal effort, are unreliable, prone to absenteeism and lacking a sense of responsibility. While such characterisation may hold true for some Afro-Trinidadians, many Indo-Trinidadian business firms and individual employers will attest that substantial numbers of Afro-Trinidadian workers are honest, productive and reliable and, in some instances, more so than Indo- Trinidadian workers.

Then there is the widely held view that Afro-Trinidadians are inclined to squander their income and time especially on fete and women. It was a complaint even made in an unguarded moment by the Father of the Nation. As a result of this propensity, Afro-Trinidadians are deemed to be eternally in debt — a condition which precludes any foundation or stability in social and family relationships.

With regard to priority afforded to fete-related activities, this particular compulsion is seen to be most evident at Carnival time when the urge is to attend every fete of the season, culminating in the gay abandon, uninhibited merriment and licentiousness of Carnival Monday and Tuesday.

It is held that such a mindset, more than anything else, defines the Afro-Trinidadian’s predilection to pleasure-seeking, self-indulgence and sensual enjoyment.

It would, however, be worthy of note that increasing numbers of Indo-Trinidadians are vigorously participating in Carnival activities in all its manifestations, much to the chagrin of the likes of Raymond Ramcharitar. More so, it has even been argued that Indo-Trinidadian women constitute a majority among female revellers.

It can hardly be disputed that extravagant consumption patterns, whether affordable or not, have been embraced by all ethnicities in this country concomitant with the emasculation of the habit of thrift.

The penchant to fete, pleasure, merriment, having a good time and excessive alcohol consumption has also become a feature of Indo-Trinidadian life.

In another aspect, Indo-Trinidadians invariably view Afro-Trinidadians as morally irresponsible which is particularly amplified in their attitude to women with whom they have liaisons and who bear them children. The men do not feel a sense of responsibility for the children they father or a duty to look after their welfare.

As committed philanderers, they are deemed to abandon mother and child/children and move on to another liaison and repeat the same relationship. As a result of such promiscuity, there is a plethora of single mothers as heads of households, an absence of paternal discipline and the proliferation of dysfunctional homes.

I am not sure what research has been done on the subject to determine the percentage of all Afro- Trinidadian families who fall in this category and what trends are discernible. Suffice it to say that the incidence of broken homes, struggling and vulnerable single mothers, absconding fathers and relationships disrupted by alcohol abuse and violence have also taken a toll on family life among some Indo-Trinidadians. Thus, in comparing the relative experience of the two major ethnic groups today, the challenge of maintaining the integrity of family life is a question of degree and scale.

(Conclusion n e x t week)