The rumor mill has been alive and well in the Territory for centuries.  In 1790, it got several revolting slaves killed.  

They heard that the British Parliament freed all slaves but the planters refused compliance.

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire for in 1789 and every year until 1806, William Wilberforce presented a Bill to the British Parliament for the abolition of the slave trade.

Charles James Fox was an able ally.  He championed abolition in the House of Commons. The Bill was passed into law in 1807 but James-Fox did not live to see the exact moment.

Like the changes to most legislation, the 1807 statute did not affect the legal position of persons enslaved before its enactment.

Wilberforce subsequently focused on other issues but from 1821, he, and Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton insisted on the immediate emancipation of all slaves. 

On his retirement in 1825, Wilberforce left agitation for the abolition in Buxton’s hands.  And on 26 July 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act was passed.  

One year later, on 1 August 1834, it became official.  Slavery was abolished in the Territory and, we are told, that the proclamation of emancipation was read at a place called the Sunday Morning Well. 

We believe it must also have been read in the churches given their prominence in the lives of the slaves.

Since that time, BVI, always marked the occasion and 70 years ago, annually, recognizes the first Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of August as holidays.

Strangely, we do not know the names Wilberforce, James-Fox or Buxton, yet what we have been doing for the last 70 years and what we have been for the past 190 years could not be possible without their Herculean efforts.

Posthumously, we thank them and their families.

So, while we celebrate, 190 years later, the struggle continues.

Some have jumped on the bandwagon in calling for reparations.  Others demand independence.

But there are those who want the ideals wrapped up in the American Declaration of Independence;  “…Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness.”  

Of course, safety and security are central to the pursuit of happiness.

Ironically, the Governor is responsible for our safety and security but we neither feel safe nor secure because the record of lawlessness, unanswered, does not read well.

Are the governor and his employers concerned?  We do not know.  What we know for sure is that they have commanded significant resources to deal with what is important to them; The COI.

And so, the public is robbed of the police’s usual response.  The COI has them fully engaged so they simply lack capacity.

What is the purpose of slamming the henhouse with such fury when the fox was allowed his party while the overseer sat in the room?

Is that the only part of good governance understood by Whitehall?

But this is our time to celebrate and we trust that it will be done safely and responsibly.

Fridays salute all who have worked hard to make the 70th celebrations special.

Happy emancipation and;

Happy Friday!