The Social Construction Of Race-Ethnic Conflict in Guyana

Those who see only race/ethnicity in politics in Guyana, as others who see tribe and religion in other countries, are not viewing reality comprehensively, objectively and scientifically. They fail to note that the two major ethnic groups in Guyana are not, in class terms, uni-class; that economics, on the one hand, and politics, ideology, culture and institutions, on the other are inter-related and inter-acting. Race/ethnicity was not the determinant when the 7-unions' candidate, George Daniels, with a minority of delegates won in a secret vote against the PNC-backed presidential candidate. At that time, the struggle at the trade union level was sufficiently advanced to cut across racial lines. So now, the struggle will advance to realize racial-ethnic unity at the political level, as in the 1947-53 period (Cheddi Jagan).