In the catalog of superheroes that have come to the big screen, Superman is probably hands down the most recognized and revered character there is.
Of the many faces who brought the character to the big screen, Christopher Reeves has quite a lasting impression on audiences around the globe. He is the shy, corky looking but cute journalist Clark Kent whose fate is sealed by his dad to use his exceptional super powers on earth. We have come to know Superman as the superhero who would descend on some unsuspecting villain and disappear as a hero to a distraught victim.
In the 1930’s not long after the fictitious character debuted, Superman took on the role of social activist, fighting crooked businessmen and politicians and demolishing run-down tenements. Superman then was deemed a saviour. He seemed invincible.
Although his character is fictitious, the people of the federation of St. Kitts and Nevis seem to be “Waiting for Superman”: a colossal figure of sorts who can somehow rescue our nation and take us to the heights we can inevitably attain as a people.
In 2012, our so-called modern society is awash with crooked social figureheads and it is no secret that a series of ill-advised policies have run many families into financial and social ruin.
On a daily basis we observe more mentally challenged people walking the streets of our federation and it is difficult to pretend not to see the growing trend of begging on the street corners or at the doors of some businesses. Those who don’t score at begging, steal instead and sometimes the victim has life just as hard as the robber. We identify with the negative impact of crime on families, and many watch as they see wanton acts of crime committed against helpless victims.
We have also observed in disbelief how politically tainted the land and house distribution process seems. The prevalence of political party supporters on government run boards is difficult to ignore. We know for certain that more of our people are hurting and even if his character is fictitious, many of us still wait for Superman.
Thousands of Kittitians were convinced Superman had made his way into Basseterre in 1993; and even if he was not really Superman, he certainly was in the minds of the people. He saved the day. Years into his tenure, the man who was our political Superman, our political kryptonite made the original Superman look like chalk declaring himself not one but ten man in one. Since 1995, he has not lost an election but political pundits continue to debate how Denzil Douglas has lost his political fervor. To their minds, Superman's script is being rewritten; by the very people who chose him.
We have watched from one political party to the next, how the love for country has waned. We have also watched an assault on the people's trust by public officials who have made government their private property. We have replaced the frustrating practices of more than a decade long of the PAM and question whether the Labour candidates of sixteen years ago forgot why the people tossed PAM out of office in the first place. We are reminded time and again that the PAM lead administration of the 80’s and early 90’s was by no means a group of choirboys. We are reminded of the alleged ill-gotten fortunes of some of its leaders and right-hand supporters. We are reminded of the series of blunders made by Dr. Simmonds and the ultimate price he paid for it in 1993.
How is it we relentlessly condemn the wrongs committed under PAM, but have somehow resigned to accept excuse after excuse for poor leadership today from some of our current leaders? At a time when we should be demanding that 21st century governance does not mirror the blunders of the past we say, “So wat if Douggie do wrong! Look wat PAM used to do. CCM was no perfect party. My government in power… is LABOUR and NRP turn now.” But aren’t we ALL citizens of St. Kitts and Nevis due fair treatment in our land of birth? Still we wait for “Superman”! A “super mind” to advise current politicians that a new breed of politics should look nothing like the corrupt politics of yesteryear.
Recently, a few friends exchanged thoughts about why our federation has become so politically polarized. They touched on the fact that almost everything in our social life somehow seems pegged to politics. One individual suggested there are citizens who he knows personally who genuinely work in a number of areas in the interest of nation building and have absolutely no interest in seeking rewards or political favour. Still, their political affiliation remains an issue. People aren’t valued for the work they can do but are assessed by political stripes.
Clearly, we didn’t get into this political morass as a nation on our own. This has been an intricately crafted strategy by our politicians to divide us as a people. What have we become in 2012? Nothing more than a divisive society we call independent. PAM this and PAM that! LABOUR this and LABOUR that! NRP for he CCM for she! Unless and until we deem this and other practices by our leaders as an affront to the very motto on which our federation was birthed, the fabric of our nation will continue to erode.
Time and again the resilience of the Kittitian has sustained us. It is the bold Kittitian whose indomitable spirit propelled Denzil Douglas to center stage in 1993. The ordinary Nevisian has stood up and confidently taken on challenges that threaten his livelihood; each brave step, taken at a snail's pace or as swiftly as a fox, bearing the hallmark of the fight in our people.
The 1930’s bear parallels to our experiences today. Superman evolved at a time when the world was in a financial tailspin. Any mode of escape, fictitious and all, was better than the dismal predicament brought on by the Great Depression. Undoubtedly, the social activist and defender of the impoverished has been the very people of the federation of St.Kitts and Nevis. It is the people who have risen to the occasion to defy the wrongs to which we have been subjected. The people have been our federation’s “super heroes”.
Maybe the people no longer need to “Wait for Superman” after all.
