Working People’s Alliance (WPA) co-leader and Member of Parliament, Dr. David Hinds, has sounded a strong warning about the deepening economic divide in Guyana, arguing that African-Guyanese are being denied equal and equitable access to opportunities created by the country’s new oil wealth.
Speaking recently on his Politics 101 programme, Dr. Hinds drew historical parallels between Guyana’s current economic landscape and early 20th-century debates in the United States between two influential African-American thinkers — Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois — whose opposing philosophies shaped the trajectory of Black empowerment.
“At the turn of the 20th century [in the United States] there was a big debate between W.E.B DuBois and Booker T Washington. Booker T Washington argued—he said black people are second class citizens in America. He said accept your second-class citizenship and go and learn trade. He set up the Tuskegee Institute, and so on. DuBois said I agree with them learning to uplift themselves—where you and I part is that they must become first class citizens.
And when you look at the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) and others, they are saying to Black people ‘we want you to make money but to make it as second-class citizens,’ and others are making $300 million—you are making $3 million. And when you reproduce $3 million, you’re reproducing comparatively speaking, your underdevelopment as a second-class citizen.”
Dr. Hinds’ reference to Washington and Du Bois reflects two competing approaches to racial uplift.
Booker T. Washington (1856–1915), an educator and founder of the Tuskegee Institute, advocated for trade skills, economic self-reliance, and gradual social progress, even if it meant temporarily accepting segregation. By contrast, W.E.B. Du Bois (1868–1963) — a scholar, author, and co-founder of the NAACP — pushed for immediate equality through higher education, political activism, and leadership from what he called the “Talented Tenth.”
Dr. Hinds drew on this historic debate to illustrate the condition of African-Guyanese today, who he said are being encouraged to participate economically but only within limited boundaries — “as second-class citizens” — while the majority of large-scale benefits from the oil sector flow elsewhere.
There is evidence of this economic disparity in several areas, including the awarding of state contracts, the distribution of development projects, and the treatment of workers in key industries. African-dominated communities continue to experience slower development compared to East Indian-dominated areas, where the ruling People’s Progressive Party (PPP) has its main support base.
Further evidence can be seen in the closure of the Bauxite Company Guyana Incorporated (BCGI) — which primarily employed an African labour force — leaving bauxite communities like Linden and Everton economically depressed. Public servants, many of whom are African-Guyanese, also continue to receive low wages, while foreign workers imported to replace migrating nurses and other professionals are paid far higher salaries for similar roles.
The International Decade for People of African Descent Assembly–Guyana (IDPADA-G) has brought the issue to the United Nations, arguing that people of African descent in Guyana face structural inequalities in access to wealth and opportunity. Veteran trade unionist Lincoln Lewis has gone even further, describing the PPP regime’s approach as a form of “economic genocide,” accusing it of politically motivated economic marginalisation.
Dr. Hinds warned that unless Guyana confronts and corrects these imbalances, the country’s rapidly expanding oil economy will deepen historical divisions instead of bridging them. He insisted that African-Guyanese must not be relegated to secondary roles but must claim their rightful share and status as “first-class citizens” in the nation’s development.
