The Nassau Village Riot is the symptom of a widespread dilemma, and other communities are set to “explode”, according to Urban Renewal Project director Dr. David Allen.
Appearing on the Island FM Radio talk-show Parliament Street yesterday, Dr. Allen named Fox Hill and The Mud community in Abaco as examples of other places that could be about to “blow up”.
According to Dr. Allen, young Bahamian men are suffering from a condition characterized by “abandonment, rejection and shame”.
This, he said, is due to a number of factors, including the lack of father figures in many families, the absence of morality in church and government leadership and the difficulties faced by young men born to non-Bahamian parents.
Mr. Allen said that members of the opposition, the government and church leaders have failed to help the situation.
“I have tried to to have an apolitical approach to this whole urban thing, but everywhere I go, I find political tribalism and denominational tribalism,” he said.
“The next one is the Mud in Marsh Harbour; it’s going to fire soon. For God’s sake government… do something! The next one is Fox Hill, there’s a war in Fox Hill going on,” he added.
According to Dr. Allen, his efforts to set up urban renewal centres in other danger areas have been met with indifference from government. He warned that if attitudes don’t change, more instability may not be far off.
It is similar to the situaion in Ancient Rome, when Nero and his incompetent government did nothing as Rome burned…
“Trumpets have heralded rises of glory and downfalls of greatness. Today, the trumpets are at full blast.
Each is a deafening blow declaring the end of Pax Americana. It is not the first time these warnings have been sounded, but it is indeed the last.
Our Rome is ablaze and our Nero sits upon the hill laughing. His antics are either laughable or pitiable, but without doubt those of a madman.
And Rome burns.
We say terrorists have destroyed our way of life, but with such a definition we are all terrorists. We are terrorists because we have allowed our Rome to burn. We are terrorists because we terrorize ourselves.”
