The Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC), an institution mandated to safeguard harmony, fairness, and dignity among all Guyanese, has once again betrayed its silence at a most critical juncture. One would expect that when the Attorney General of this nation, Anil Nandlall, chose to utter words so deeply offensive to Afro-Guyanese pride and history, the ERC would rise to its mandate. Instead, it has gone blind, deaf, and dumb.
At a political meeting at Stabroek Market, the Attorney General boldly declared: “Cuffy was a proud and upstanding house slave. Nothing wrong with being a house slave.” This statement, dripping with ignorance and disrespect, is not only an insult to the legacy of Cuffy but also a direct affront to every descendant of those who suffered under the brutality of slavery.
Cuffy is not just a name in history books; he is a symbol of resistance, sacrifice, and the undying struggle for freedom. He stood against the chains of oppression so that generations after him could inherit dignity and liberty. To reduce his memory to the belittling label of a “house slave” is to spit on the struggles of our foreparents and trivialise one of the greatest acts of rebellion in the Caribbean.
Yet, while Afro-Guyanese are justly outraged, the ERC has remained silent. Where are the statements of condemnation? Where is the defense of respect, dignity, and cultural preservation that the ERC claims to represent? Instead of fulfilling its duty, the Commission appears paralysed—unable or unwilling to challenge the political powers that be.
This silence is not neutrality; it is complicity. When the ERC fails to call out racism, disrespect, or historical distortion, it becomes an accessory to those very acts. By staying mute, the ERC tells Afro-Guyanese that their pain, their history, and their struggles can be trampled upon without consequence.
The Commission must be reminded that it was not created to be a lapdog of the government but a guardian of the people’s dignity. When leaders seek to rewrite history for political expediency, when they insult national heroes, and when they belittle the descendants of the enslaved, the ERC’s role is to speak—loudly and clearly.
If the ERC cannot defend Cuffy’s legacy, if it cannot stand with Afro-Guyanese in the face of such blatant disrespect, then it has lost its moral authority like I said before. A commission that is blind, deaf, and dumb in the face of injustice is of no use to a people struggling for equality and respect.
Afro-Guyanese must never forget: silence is betrayal. And today, the ERC stands guilty of betraying the very people it is supposed to protect.
