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Guyana will today join the rest of the Caribbean in celebrating 175 years of freedom from slavery, which to some is a relatively long time to have attained such a noticeable feat.  However, there are others who consider 175 years as a rather short period considering the fact that Africans were enslaved for more than 400 years.Nevertheless, the fact remains that liberation was formally realised for all Africans brought to the Caribbean Colonies, including Guyana, by August 1, 1838.African Rights Activist, Dr David HindsThis achievement was however, followed by some noticeable highs and some very cataclysmic lows for the freed Africans in Guyana who were then expected to integrate themselves into the normal human existence, centuries after enduring slavery.Taking ChargeImmediately after emancipation, the Africans in Guyana moved to procure lands and before long, they were creating communities, a move which was then dubbed the ‘Village Movement’. This, according to Executive Member of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) and African Rights Activist, Dr David Hinds, was characterised by the creation of African Villages along the East Coast of Demerara. “It is not that they just bought the land and created the villages, but one of the first things they set up was their churches and their schools; so that means education was uppermost in their minds,” disclosed Dr Hinds during an interview with this publication.Working together towards one common goal – the development of the African people – was an imperative so much so that there was distribution of farmlands, situated at the back of the villages with a view of ensuring economic stability.This, Dr Hinds emphasised, demonstrated their capability to put in place a political economy, whereby they were able to govern themselves.“What they did was remarkable; it has not been replicated anywhere in the African Diaspora…Guyana stands out in regard to the village movement,” insisted Dr. Hinds.In fact, this outstanding achievement is expected to be highlighted by one of the foremost recorders of African history, Eusi Kwayana, when he launches a book ‘The Village Movement’ on August 31, 2013, in New York, United States of America. The book,Wholesale Adidas NHL Jerseys, this publication understands, encapsulates an interview between Dr Hinds and Kwayana about that period of the African Guyanese history.Downward SpiralBut being in slavery for many centuries did nothing for the willpower of the former slaves. In fact they were constantly subjected to the “scars of bondage” or the “wounds of slavery”, which were manifested in a number of daunting ways.This, according to Dr Hinds, was due to the fact that slavery was a total institution which saw those enslaved as “non-persons…They had no dignity or worth in life. As a slave, you were a commodity, you had no rights…The master, if you behaved bad, could cut off two of your fingers and that’s it; nobody charged him for anything.”And although emancipation meant a reclaiming and a regaining of humanity for the freed Africans, it was a tremendous undertaking, Dr Hinds asserted. This, he said, was in part due to the fact that those who were enslaved were behind the rest of the peoples of the world in terms of development.This state of affairs has therefore allowed for the African society to be in dire trouble today, according to Dr Hinds.He attributed this to his belief that “we have had a ‘prolonged down’ over the last two decades or so, which hinges on the perception that the development of the peoples of a country is dependent on who rules, politically.”“That is a fact; and so African Guyanese, having become part of that national model now where there is no political power, they have found themselves on the margin of the society,” said Dr Hinds.He explained that ever since the attainment of Independence of May 26, 1966, “we have come to calculate the progress of the ethnic communities based on when they are in Government and for the last 20 years we have not had an African Guyanese Government.”Moreover, he intimated his conviction that the group that holds political power is in fact the group that has the power to distribute resources. “It has the power to determine who gets contracts, to determine who gets a job, to determine which village gets its roads fixed and the quality of schools in particular communities; so really as a Government you have total power….”As such, Dr Hinds expressed that “a ruling Government could, in a sense, have power similar to that of a slave master on a plantation.”Multiplying PovertyAs evident even today,Wholesale Hockey Jerseys Authentic, Dr Hinds observed that without resourceful backing, there is no economic strength, a development which resulted in the African Guyanese being unable to acquire wealth and instead became increasingly plagued with poverty. There have however been a few who were independently able to overcome this shortcoming, he noted.But according to the African Rights Activist, individual success has certainly not translated into the success of the communities. “We have lost that sense that those of us who did well would go back to the community and share our expertise, our wealth and our knowledge with our communities in order to lift and develop our communities…,” said Dr Hinds.He has deduced that the vast majority of African Guyanese who have done well over the years are in fact “in exile, even when we live in the physical community, and that has hurt us.” This state-of-affairs, he said, is in complete contrast to the days when Dr Hinds was a young boy growing up in Buxton, East Coast Demerara.Teachers for instance, he disclosed, would back in the day offer free lessons to children of the community when they returned home from school in the evenings; something that simply does not happen now.  As a result, he said, those with the knowledge are no longer giving backing to their communities with a view of ensuring development and by extension bring an end to the ever prevailing poverty situation.The way forwardIn addition to seeking the support of Government and the private sector,Adam Joseph Duhe Dolphins Jersey, it is the view of Dr Hinds that there is still hope for the African Guyanese of today. And the way forward he predicts is to unwaveringly return to the land. He alluded to a time when agriculture was viewed as an unreliable economical avenue but asserted that “while agriculture in the old way is over,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys, we still in this technological age need primary products.”According to him, since it is a well known fact that economic produce can today be turned into process foods, there can be striving partnerships between businesses and the small farmers to ensure that the processing market is satisfied.This can be done, he said,Cheap Authentic NFL Jersey, even as moves are being made to streamline national conversations to understand the situation of the African Guyanese in order to plot remedial strategies. This move will be kicked into motion through the African Cultural Development Association (ACDA) in Georgetown on Sunday August 4, 2013, in the form of a forum on “African Guyanese.”“We will begin to talk about our problems,” said Dr Hinds, who disclosed that the discussions will also be taken to Linden, the Essequibo Coast, the West Coast and West Bank of Demerara, the East Coast of Demerara, West Coast Berbice and even to the Corentyne. “Every Region and every community where Africans live,Wholesale China Jerseys, we are going there to have this conversation,” said Dr Hinds who disclosed that the next step will be to find recovery solutions.