Mia Amor Mottley is not a household name here in the United States, though she should be. Since her rise to become the first female prime minister of Barbados in 2018, Mottley has become a voice for her nation, the Caribbean, and countries worldwide facing the global challenges of climate change, COVID-19, economic inequality, colonialism, racism, and militarism.
Mottley leaped to the attention of many people who had never heard of her or knew very little about Barbados when she gave a speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 24; what she had to say made headlines.
For this edition of Caribbean Matters, we’ll get to know Mottley, as well as explore both the history and current events in Barbados.
Caribbean Matters is a weekly series from Daily Kos. If you are unfamiliar with the region, check out Caribbean Matters: Getting to know the countries of the Caribbean.
Here is the video of Mottley’s potent address:
YouTube Video
Here are some key highlights from her remarks posted to the Barbados government website.
You can also download the full transcript.
Mottley got far more coverage than most speeches made at the U.N. from smaller countries because she referenced the words of a hero of popular global culture: Bob Marley.
Reuters’ headline was “Get up, stand up: Barbados leader invokes Marley to goad U.N.”; the Associated Press used less antagonistic framing but notably cut off her statement after the Marley lyric.
There was, of course, a lot of reportage from Caribbean papers like The Jamaica Gleaner, however cultural publications like DancehallMag, who reach a much younger audience, also applauded her (and included the full Marley quote).
Moving past the Bob Marley quote, how did Mottley rise to become Barbados’ first female prime minister? Her biography, posted at the Caribbean Elections database, offers some insight into her journey.
Caribbean Elections also notes that Mottley comes from a political family: Her grandfather, Ernest Deighton Mottley, was the first mayor of Barbados’ capital city, Bridgetown; her father, Elliott Deighton Mottley, was a consul-general, and her uncle, Ernest Deighton Mottley, was a leader of the Christian Social Democratic party (CSD).
Mottley is commanding in person and handles being on the global political stage with panache; as this clip from a recent August BBC interview illustrates, she doesn’t miss a beat.
Here’s the full program.
YouTube Video
As YouTube channel IgnoredVoices notes in the video’s caption:
At a time when the British royal family has been in the news quite a bit—from sexual assault charges against Prince Andrew to virulent racism from elements of the British press against Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex—what has been vitally important, from a Caribbean perspective, is that Barbados is scheduled to give the Queen the boot and become a parliamentary republic on Nov. 30, 2021.
The removal of Elizabeth II as head of state on the nation’s 55th anniversary of independence was announced in September 2020.
The date for the transition was announced by Mottley in July, along with plans to replace Queen Elizabeth with a non-executive president.
In August, the island nation’s first president was announced: Dame Sandra Mason.
Francis Akhalbey, writing for Face2Face Africa, reports on Mason’s epic resume.
Kudos to our Bajan sisters and brothers for having two Black women as leaders to face the challenges ahead! Join me in the comments for more on the island’s history and culture and suggestions for further reading.
Read the first installment of Caribbean Matters here.
Mottley leaped to the attention of many people who had never heard of her or knew very little about Barbados when she gave a speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 24; what she had to say made headlines.
For this edition of Caribbean Matters, we’ll get to know Mottley, as well as explore both the history and current events in Barbados.
Caribbean Matters is a weekly series from Daily Kos. If you are unfamiliar with the region, check out Caribbean Matters: Getting to know the countries of the Caribbean.
Here is the video of Mottley’s potent address:
YouTube Video
Here are some key highlights from her remarks posted to the Barbados government website.
You can also download the full transcript.
Mottley got far more coverage than most speeches made at the U.N. from smaller countries because she referenced the words of a hero of popular global culture: Bob Marley.
Reuters’ headline was “Get up, stand up: Barbados leader invokes Marley to goad U.N.”; the Associated Press used less antagonistic framing but notably cut off her statement after the Marley lyric.
There was, of course, a lot of reportage from Caribbean papers like The Jamaica Gleaner, however cultural publications like DancehallMag, who reach a much younger audience, also applauded her (and included the full Marley quote).
Moving past the Bob Marley quote, how did Mottley rise to become Barbados’ first female prime minister? Her biography, posted at the Caribbean Elections database, offers some insight into her journey.
Caribbean Elections also notes that Mottley comes from a political family: Her grandfather, Ernest Deighton Mottley, was the first mayor of Barbados’ capital city, Bridgetown; her father, Elliott Deighton Mottley, was a consul-general, and her uncle, Ernest Deighton Mottley, was a leader of the Christian Social Democratic party (CSD).
Mottley is commanding in person and handles being on the global political stage with panache; as this clip from a recent August BBC interview illustrates, she doesn’t miss a beat.
Here’s the full program.
YouTube Video
As YouTube channel IgnoredVoices notes in the video’s caption:
At a time when the British royal family has been in the news quite a bit—from sexual assault charges against Prince Andrew to virulent racism from elements of the British press against Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex—what has been vitally important, from a Caribbean perspective, is that Barbados is scheduled to give the Queen the boot and become a parliamentary republic on Nov. 30, 2021.
The removal of Elizabeth II as head of state on the nation’s 55th anniversary of independence was announced in September 2020.
The date for the transition was announced by Mottley in July, along with plans to replace Queen Elizabeth with a non-executive president.
In August, the island nation’s first president was announced: Dame Sandra Mason.
Francis Akhalbey, writing for Face2Face Africa, reports on Mason’s epic resume.
Kudos to our Bajan sisters and brothers for having two Black women as leaders to face the challenges ahead! Join me in the comments for more on the island’s history and culture and suggestions for further reading.
Read the first installment of Caribbean Matters here.