First I must give thanks to those of you who are ensuring that I keep abreast of Anguilla politics while so far removed from the action. I hope that one of you will speak for me with the might of the OECS legal and political minds combined on the spot, to raise the matter of speeding up the long awaited Family Law Reform with no excuses accepted for further delay. As I thought about this, with thanks and gratitude for the receipt of another small grant to facilitate Parenting Education seminars, the principle of collective security keeps coming to mind.

This is a principle strongly espoused by His Imperial Majesty, Qidamawi Haile Selassie, and who saw the advent of the United Nations in this vein. In my mind, this was the principle at work to ensure the success of the Anguilla Revolution and in today’s world as we too tentatively promote the development of social capital it again breathes life into that principle of collective security. Being in Ethiopia for an extended period has revealed that principle at work in everyday life in stark contrast to the individualism that characterizes the west and the ideology of capitalism and which seems to have become predominant in Anguilla.

First there is the observation of people doing things together - a sharing of even light tasks such as two women or two men carrying a bag. Then there are the numerous opportunities for what would be a fight in Anguilla, which does not take place here because onlookers move into the arena of conflict very quickly to make sure it does not escalate into the fight. Even when tempers seem to flare to the point where young men may be up in each other’s faces and one may even pick up a rock, that rock is never flung. There seems to be a deep and culturally abiding sense of the duty of brotherhood. The most striking experience to date was an incident that took place on the journey to Harar the other day. We took an overnight stop in the town of Nazareth and so I did not realize that it was a 12 hour journey until we returned, taking three different buses, starting out at about 5.30 a.m. and returning to Shashemene at about 5.30 p.m. As we covered the miles of road, at one point we came to a stop and another, larger bus pulled in just ahead of us. The driver and all his passengers approached our driver angrily, some shaking their fists, for a heated exchange in Oromia language I think. The exchange went on for a few minutes before it subsided. They returned to their bus and drove off and we followed. Our guide explained that they thought our driver was one who witnessed their breakdown by the side of the road and drove past without stopping to help – thereby committing a cardinal sin. It is a social requirement, to stop and offer help. None of us on the bus saw any other vehicle stranded and our driver managed to convince them that he did not see them or they may have mistaken him for another. My hosts Brother Desi and Sister Joan who moved here from Jamaica over 30 years ago and have birth six children on the Shashemene land granted by His Majesty, have many stories to tell when I share such observations.

I have just finished reading pre-President Obama’s two books, “Dreams From My Father” and “The Audacity of Hope” – a title he borrowed from a sermon delivered by his former Pastor Jeremiah Wright. Both books make offerings to my thoughts on collective security as I write. As Obama reflects on his quality of life in the United States of America, juxtaposing that with the experiences of visiting his father’s side of the family in Kenya, he struggles to understand his father’s life in an effort to make sense of his own. His father, Dr. Obama had risen to some heights in Kenya’s social circles only to fall because he could not make the break between the demands of his immediate families and those of the wider extended family social networks. He also did not understand the importance of maintaining the tribal status quo and sadly, did not even realize when his name no longer held good for local credit. His mixed race son, now President Obama, sharing his experiences as a community organizer trying to find out what he would eventually become commented on how “un-African” and “unnatural somehow” the individualism seemed. “Without power for the group,” he wrote, “a group larger, even, than an extended family, our success always threatened to leave others behind.”

This is Anguilla’s struggle. We have focused on building the human capital in which a few privileged ones have been helped to shine, while the few left behind are causing us to imprison ourselves in fear and to once again seek to increase the size of Anguilla’s prison.

On the other hand, The Audacity of Hope is a title that can easily be the theme for these Africans who have returned home and are reestablishing roots despite all odds. We are witnessing a third generation being born and bred on Ethiopian soil, whose first language is Amharic and who speak English either with the accents of their island born grandparents or with Amharic accents. Obama speaks of the audacity of hope as the best of the American spirit – of a people “having the audacity to believe that despite all evidence to the contrary, that we could restore a sense of community to a nation torn by conflict; the gall to believe that despite personal setbacks, the loss of a job or an illness in the family or a childhood mired in poverty, we had some control – and therefore responsibility – over our own fate.”

It is my hope that the political leaders and those aspiring so to become, would do more than capture the temporary attention of Anguillians in exchange for a vote. It is my hope that among them will be those willing to lead the charge, however, unpopular and unsexy, that reminds us of the duty to be our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers. It is not that the charge must emanate from the political platform but those on the platform must recognize and acknowledge and support the kind of initiatives being taken by the Citrus Group which is taking pains to promote inclusivity and to foster a spirit of togetherness less we become silly enough to allow the strands of partisan politics to divide us.

I would be remiss if I failed to close with the teachings of His Majesty, shared not only for the benefit of our politicians but also for all of us.

“…the people themselves must come to realize their own difficulties in the development of their community and try to solve them by collective participation, following an order of priority and taking their potentiality into account. It is well known to you all that recognizing one’s problems and striving hard to challenge them is a mark of an attempt at self-sufficiency. A country belongs to both leaders and people. The mutual cooperation between them is testimony to this fact.”

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