National Heroes Month 2022 in Context

Today marks the beginning of one of the three most important months on our country’s national calendar. The month of March has been officially designated as National Heroes Month with particular focus on March 14, the date of the death of our only National hero, Paramount Chief Chatoyer, as a public holiday – National Heroes Day. The other most significant months in our calendar are August, in commemoration of Emancipation Day and October when we celebrate the anniversary of our country’s reclamation of independence in 1979.

Each year on March 14, we go through the ritual of journeying to Dorsetshire Hill, the location of an obelisk on the site believed to be where Chatoyer was killed by the British colonialists, and stage a ceremony in homage of his brave defence of our independence. There are also activities hosted by the Garifuna Foundation, Chatoyer’s people, in memory of their contribution towards this country.

Almost every year we make a call for greater stock taking and reflection on whether these are enough and for us to seek to go deeper. While we welcome the positive step to officially recognize March 14 and honour Chatoyer, a lot still is left to be done to erase the legacy of genocide, expropriation of Kalinago and Garifuna lands and the centuries of discrimination and racism against these native peoples.

The first few days of National Heroes Month this year coincide with a visit by our Deputy Prime Minister, Montgomery Daniel, himself of Kalinago descent, to Belize. He is leading our country’s delegation to the CARICOM heads of Government Conference in that Central American country. Belize is home to a sizeable population of Garifuna people, whose ancestors were exiled from St Vincent in the late 18th century. The Garifuna are a mix of African and Kalinago and no doubt, Minister Daniel will be warmly welcomed, he being a visitor from the country they regard as their ancestral homeland.

National Heroes Month also comes at a time when the focus of the world is on the nation of Ukraine whose sovereignty and the right of their people to self-determination and a peaceful existence are being trampled on by the invading Russia. What is taking place in Europe should make us reflect on what national sovereignty really means and its fragility in the face of other, more powerful nations who may have ambitions that are diametrically opposed to the best interests of one’s country.

So, as we usher in National Heroes Month, let us reflect on what it really means to be a nation and if we are doing enough to honour the legacy of our heroes.