The Caribbean with Simon Reeve Part 2

The Caribbean with Simon Reeve Part 2   

    Simon Reeve goes to Barbados and immediately there is a paradigm shift of sorts. To start it seems like money flows in Barbados but not from the people that are native to there but from the people that are moving there. Barbados is a mostly African-descent nation that is also one of the cheapest Caribbean islands. With this influx of new people the island is now different then it used to be with a better economy and mansions going up everywhere. One island native said "they just don't want a black man on the beach" speaking to the apparent westernization of the island with the recent influx of ex-pats. A local rejected 8 million dollars for his small plot of beachfront property as he valued his home and land more than money. I think the man makes a fair argument and points at something that can be seen all over the world. It is commonplace in major cities that when an industry or attraction brings in new people the city and the standard of living improves but with that the cost of the area goes up dramatically. This progress and improvement is often at the expense of the locals who were there in the first place being forced out. In places like Portland, Oregon the city is vastly less dangerous then it was 20 years ago but many people who grew up there have been forced out and many ethnic neighborhoods dissolved in favor of a predominantly white community. The thing is it's not as simple as "not wanting a black man on the beach" there is a lot more that goes into gentrification and development then purely race. Poverty and low income is often common in ethnic communities this is specifically also the case in Barbados. It's not that the inhabitants are black or of non-white origin it is that their community happens to be impoverished and can't afford the rising prices of everything so they are subsequently pushed out. Race is a factor in poverty unfortunately but it's not race itself it's the income that is the most important factor. If the island was poor and white and a group of rich people of African-descent came there to build mansions and feed the economy then the white people would inevitably be pushed out. This is merely what I have derived from the situation, race could he a factor in native Bajan's being forced out of their own island but it's not the dominating factor, it comes down to economics more then anything, which is actually the root of most things. 

    Reeve goes to Venezuala and what he finds is shocking. As the documentary was filmed in 2015 it doesn't capture the economic failings of Venezuela and it's national debt default but it shows the country on the verge of collapse. Poverty and murder run rampant through the nation killing anyone that dares to stand it's wake. If starvation and the lack of healthcare doesn't kill you the organized crime violence probably will. Opulent wealth flows through most other oil-rich nations like Qatar and Saudi Arabia but Venezuala is just poverty-stricken. A failed socialist state lead By Hugo Chavez that had the welfare of it's citizens in mind but ultimately failed due to overspending without a plan to pay that debt down. Columbia provides much of the same story but lacks oil rich resources and is plagued by a drug trade and criminal empire. It's ironic how murder and poverty are so widespread in a natural landscape rivaled in beauty by few other places. I think one day Columbia and Venezuela will improve greatly but they have a long road ahead of them.

Comments

  1. Lauren RobinsonOctober 4, 2020 at 6:43 PM

    This Documentary shook me to the core. The start of this documentary when they are describing the Carabaos you are empowered by a man turning down a 8 million dollar deal so that he can stay because money did not have an impact on how he lived. when they traveled to Venezuela you see a complete change of scenery, I go back to the beginning of this documentary how people are paying 8 million dollars for a home they won't even be living in year round. The culture of having money so not knowing that there is an entire country struggling for a meal. This was an entire reality check for me. I think how you describe the Country of Venezuela is entirely accurate while it is horrible and sad to even come to terms with.

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