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A CASE FOR

ARIBBEAN CIVILIZATIO

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Even as we speak there are still intellectualswho elieve that we are !still eco"in# aCivili$ation%& To historians an' Sociolo#ist we

are not an authentic Cariean ut a parrotof established Empires like Britain andAmerica

So"e European an' A"erican scholars pi'#in(hole us into a cate#or) * we are +ust ane,tension o- western civili$ation& .esternCulture/ Institutions/ an' Values havecontriute' to our 'evelop"ent&

0owever there are "an) "o'ern thinkers whoview us as havin# a con1'e Civili$ation&

Felipe Fernan'e$(Ar"esto/0istor) 2ro-essor

-or O,-or' * Cariean Civili$ation is shape' the sea an' are small-island or seaboard

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We can no longer be a nation of uttering leaves,spending our lives in the air, our treetop cronedin oers, humming or creaking b! the caprices ofsunlight or thrashed and fuelled b! tempests" #hetrees must form ranks to block the seven-leaguesgiant" $t is the hour of reckoning and of marchingin unison 3os4 5arti 6786

$t is dehumanising and false to vie the%aribbean as potential American problems" We are

peoples ith an identit! and a culture and ahistor!&the 'arliament of Barbados ill be ()*!ears old in +" We don.t need lessons in

democrac! from an!one" /oever, severe theeconomic di0culties facing the %aribbean, e areviable functioning societies ith the intellectualand institutional resources to understand andgrapple ith our problems" %ollectivel!, e have

the resource potential necessar! for our continueddevelopment and, of course, e have a heritage of

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:enneth Clarke * ;En#lish .riter< Once a people -eel an'oserve the"selves as civili$e'/ we are& As civili$e'people we "ust e aware that we occup) aseascape=lan'scape/ we have a culture/ we haveinstitutions/ we have a histor)& .e have a sense o-per"anence ;over ti"eniversit) o- 0avana

8& the heroic attles o- the Cuan people in 'e-ence an'pro"otion o- their soverei#nt)/ national in'epen'ence an'internationalis"H

6K& the strivin# o- our sports"en / sportswo"en/ culturalcreators an' writers o- the creative i"a#ination/ pro-essionals o-

all kin's/ peasants an' workers o- e,cellenceH

66& the uil'in# o- -rien'ships internationall) etween peoplesan' nationsH an'

6& #enerall) the collective actions o- our peoples in the arts/

culture/ pro'uction/ architecture/ reli#ion/ +ournalis"/ politicsan' s orts