The Tribune

By ALICIA WALLACE

Systems are failing us all the time. These system failures lead to unfavorable conditions. They affect our daily lives. They affect our wellbeing. We have been, however, trained not ignore systems and to focus on the individual. We look for the ways that an individual has done less than their best, or the ways that we ourselves have somehow contribute to the situation we find uncomfortable, dangerous, or otherwise subpar.

We have a tendency to turn on and blame one another for failures rather than being attentive to the ways that systems malfunction or, in as is often the case, successfully degrade, endanger, subjugate, and limit us and our positive life outcomes.

Last week, someone posted in a popular Facebook group about the gates at public elementary schools being closed until eight o’clock in the morning. The person raised the safety issue this causes after a child “decided to jump in front of [their] car” and they slammed on the breaks to avoid hitting the child. They referenced recent events that let us know that there are safety concerns that must be considered with regard to school-age children. The post also included a note about the children failing to listen to the security guard before this change to the gate opening time was made.

The issue the post raised is valid. With the school gate closed until eight o’clock, when teachers are at work, there is a significant amount of time that children are outside of the premises and without supervision. Given the traffic on the road from seven o’clock to nine o’clock in the morning, the eight and nine o’clock start times for far too many jobs, the start time for school, and the inefficiency and safety issues of public transportation, parents are often forced to drop their children to school quite early to ensure that the children get to school on time and they are on time for work.

Somehow, many of the comments ignored the issue the person raised, instead casting blame on parents. Numerous people suggested that parents think it is someone else’s responsibility to supervise their children outside of school hours. Some referenced the disrespect and rudeness of children and the need for parents to better train and discipline their children. Others pointed out the school is not for babysitting children. A few noted that the eight o’clock opening of the gate is a Ministry of Education policy. These may all be interesting points that can explored further. The issue that remains is the inability of many parents to take their children to school at a later time or wait at the school until the gate opens. The options may be for children to miss school or to be there early, before the gate is open.

It a quite common for people to respond to systemic issues by imposing a set of rules or practices, however unrealistic, on individuals. There are sometimes ways that we can improve our lives and make more options available to ourselves, but we cannot bootstrap ourselves out of poverty and the same is true for other conditions that extend beyond our personal capacity to change.

There are many who cannot afford a one-bedroom apartment, not because they are unemployed, inept, or lazy, but because minimum wage is not enough money to live independently. People who are employed and unhoused do not need to be told to get jobs. They have jobs, and the problem is both the rate of pay and the incompatibility of the rate of pay with the actual cost of living. Reducing homelessness does not necessarily require job creation or helping people to find jobs, though this may be helpful for some. It requires a completely different approach to the remuneration of employees and the social services that should support people who are not paid enough to meet their basic needs. A shelter for unhoused people would be a great initiative, and it would not solve the problem. It makes for a good temporary measure while systemic changes are made.

In the case of the school gate opening at eight o’clock and the resulting situation of children being unsupervised and unsafe early in the morning, it may be useful for parents, administrations, teachers, and community members to get together and find a way to create a safe environment for the children who must be taken to school early. Opening the gate and having security to ensure only children and staff gain access may be considered ideal. Others may think there should be a “holding place” for the children before the gate opens, but this still requires adult supervision. We can think of many ways to address this issue on site, but the root of the issue would still be there. There is a system that needs to change.

School hours and work hours are not harmonised, and employers are not responsive to the needs of employees who are full human beings—not just staff, but have other responsibilities as family members and friends.

The 9-to-5 and 8-to-4 work schedule has taken root and become the standard, even in a country that is heavily dependent on the tourism industry (which requires shift work) along with other service industries. Many administrative job functions do not need to be performed during specific hours. Many businesses and customers would benefit from different open hours. There are numerous adjustments that can be made.

While New Providence is not growing in size, the number of cars on the road seem to keep increasing. Traffic is a mess almost all day, every day. It takes far too long to get from one place to another, all because of the number of cars on the road at any given time (and the ways they are driven). This can be alleviated with adjustments to the work day and overall flexibility in work schedules. Everyone does not need to be at work at eight or nine in the morning. Some can begin work at ten or eleven o’clock. We can go into detail about the ways this could benefit businesses, but it is really enough to recognise the benefits to workers and their families. That, on its own, is important, but it is not reflected in workplace practices because the priority is profit. That is the rule of capitalism, of course, yet we are all living in the world, living in this country, where we could all benefit from a better ecosystem, and that begins with support for families.

What needs to change with regard to the rights of workers? What do employers need to do differently? How can we make it possible for people to be as high-performing in their families as they are on their jobs? What have we accepted as normal or standard that need not be? How can we train ourselves to think beyond the individual, resist the urge to cast blame, and set about creating solutions that can be applied at the systemic level, for the benefit of all?

As we continue to navigate the challenges of a world that is unchanging in many ways, yet changing in ways that terrify and terrorize many, it is important that we remember the importance of community. We have a responsibility to be attentive, not only to individual and familial needs, but to the needs of the collective. We, as community members, need to actively care for one another, understanding the value of human life and the necessity of combining our efforts to assess problems, create solutions, and advocate for systemic change that is the responsibility of the people we elected to represent us.

National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month, so it is a good time to revisit favorite poems, pick up a book of poetry, or even put pen to paper to write a poem or two. To join the people participating in National Poetry Writing Month, send a message to Poinciana Paper Press on Facebook or Instagram to request an add to the WhatsApp group. The group will write a collective poem at Sovereign, the exhibition open at Poinciana Paper Press on Wednesday, April 9, at 6pm, and those in New Providence will meet at the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas on Sunday, April 13, at 2pm for a field trip that includes a look at this year’s National Exhibition and writing together.

“For Nothing Is Fixed” by James Baldwin

For nothing is fixed,

forever, forever, forever,

it is not fixed;

the earth is always shifting,

the light is always changing,

the sea does not cease to grind down rock.

Generations do not cease to be born,

and we are responsible to them

because we are the only witnesses they have.

The sea rises, the light fails,

lovers cling to each other,

and children cling to us.

The moment we cease to hold each other,

the moment we break faith with one another,

the sea engulfs us and the light goes out.