Senator the Honourable John S. Jeremie, SC, has issued a statement rejecting claims that this year’s Emancipation Day programme, developed under the stewardship of Professor Selwyn Cudjoe, was racist or divisive, describing the criticism as regrettable and wholly unfounded.
In a statement released Monday, the Attorney General defended Professor Cudjoe as one of Trinidad and Tobago’s most distinguished scholars and patriots, noting his decades of scholarship illuminating the history, literature and lived experiences of Caribbean people, particularly those of African descent. He pointed to Cudjoe’s academic career at institutions including Harvard University and Wellesley College, and his current role as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the University of Trinidad and Tobago.
“Few possess his depth of knowledge or moral authority on these subjects,” Jeremie said. “It is therefore both regrettable and wholly unfounded to suggest that an Emancipation programme developed under his stewardship could be in any way racist or divisive. I reject that assertion unequivocally.”
Senator Jeremie also spoke in defence of the Honourable Michelle Benjamin, Minister of Culture, saying she has served the country with the utmost decorum and inclusivity in both her ministerial portfolio and as a Member of Parliament. He noted that her constituency holds an important place in the country’s African heritage, including the original and generational home of the Merikins.
The Senator further pushed back against what he described as a false narrative suggesting the Government led by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar is discriminatory towards citizens of African descent.
“The facts are unmistakable,” he said, noting that Black Trinbagonians have been entrusted with some of the highest offices of State, including the Office of the Attorney General and the Ministries of Homeland Security, Defence, Foreign and CARICOM Affairs, Works, Rural Development, Labour, Culture, Sport, and Public Administration and Artificial Intelligence, among others.
“These appointments reflect a Government guided by merit, competence and service to country,” he said.