The Tribune

By Rev. Canon S. Sebastian Campbell

The privilege was mine to travel as a commissioner on the flag journey throughout this archipelago as an important plank in the 40th Anniversary of Independence celebrations. Every island and cay had the same basic composition of attendees, a cross section of all age groups. The toddlers, children and youth were well represented and so was the mature generation of Bahamians, who actually participated in and witnessed the birth of the nation on July 10, 1973. An elderly person with a child were the chosen ones to be directly involved in the flag raising and lowering. The objective was to portray in living colours, the theme of the anniversary, “The Bridge to the Future…the Journey Continues.”

It was my privilege to give a number of motivational addresses, on all these cays and islands. “Our children”, I said each time, “are the bridge to the future. Forty years hence you will be the leaders of this country, standing where I stand today.” Think about it, forty years hence? On the shoulders of our older people, our children are to stand? What kind of a shoulder are they to stand on?

The father of the nation, with tears in his eyes once said: “The Bahamian male is an endangered species.” What could he have meant; what do you think it means? Well, let’s be real. Well over one thousand young men are behind bars, close to fifteen hundred, in fact. Gangsterism invades our culture; here girls are neck-to-neck with our boys. Girls normally follow either their brothers or boyfriends.

In fact I was approached to be a pimp for a gang in formation to be known as the Invincibles.

The gall of my students to approach me on this?

Isn’t it appalling that many of our children are only known by their street names?

Such as ‘Ice-Pick’, ‘Crab’, ‘Donkey’, ‘Claw’, etc. what do these names in and of themselves imply?

It is sad to acknowledge that so many of our youth are unemployable; they just “ain’t gat it”. I hope the recently announced training institute led by Agatha Marcel will bring some relief. The rate of literacy in our Bahamas is way below the mark. Unacceptable!

It is ironic boasting of Rhodes Scholars, with so many ‘road scholars’ yes, walking aimlessly on our streets, begging for an existence, walking like zombies and believing the world owes them.

I will expound further on these issues above. But allow me for now to advance some poetry entitled “Concerned” written by a budding poet, young Bahamian, who prefers to remain nameless.

I will share it with you as we think seriously of material to build that bridge to the future…

“Concerned”

I am concerned about the approaching future and the generation we have to lead.

I’m not sure that they are fully equipped with the knowledge that they’ll need.

A regressive bunch they are, with no hindsight view.

Their progressive nature went out the door instead of through the roof.

Their neediness call for greediness and never wanting to work.

Instead they rape and disengage the lessons that they’ve learnt.

Though the struggle is real and the vexation strong.

The reasons why they behave as such is still considered wrong.

They are imprisoned by the vegetation that surrounds them forcing them to think with feelings of their gut.

They as a nation are hungry, and the laws of the leaders they rebut.

Reacting with a demeanour so distasteful that the delight for some comes only from within.

Making the best of the recession we now live in.


The discontent of such a people will only further take us into depression creating an ever so segmented nation.

You are correct if you think that disappointment probes me to speak.

The future generation we’ve created street smart, but weak.

As a nation we should be able to do better but we barely stand on our own two feet.

Hanging on to the thought of making it by threads never thinking to admit defeat.