Social Justice Bermuda (SJB) is both shocked and dismayed by the recent gun murders, from the double homicide of Natrae Eversley and Nakai Robinson on August 12th, to yet another on Tuesday. This most recent death feels especially horrific, when we consider that Janae Minors was a mother and a hard-working entrepreneur who was gunned down inside the shop that she’d poured her heart and soul into. We join our community in mourning these lost lives, and offer our sincere condolences to the loved ones of the deceased.
This is not the first time that SJB has issued such a statement, and we are saddened to know it will likely not be the last.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, this violence will not end with thoughts and prayers. It won’t end until we truly address the root causes. Those root causes continue to be the structural inequality that plagues our society. This inequality is not just economic – it is also racial and gendered. There can be no shortcuts to address this root cause – it requires political will, sustained and multi-dimensional attention (across Ministries and sectors), and financial investment. It requires thinking about our most vulnerable citizens and wrapping services around them to address their needs.
It will be hard work. It will require hard truths and introspection across society.
We advise caution to those who – out of the pain of trauma – respond with calls for reactionary and punitive policies and performative actions, like a more militarised police force and restrictions of public freedoms.
We understand these reactions, however we note that they will not solve the problem. In many ways, they risk compounding it, while also eroding civil liberties to the detriment of all. At best, they simply lead to a temporary ‘peace’ only for it to break out once more, with tragedy upon tragedy.
We echo once more the following recommendations:
- An end to the war on drugs and a shift to Portugal’s model of treating drug use as a public health issue.
- The introduction of a progressive tax system that taxes all sources of wealth.
- Greater investment into social welfare services to address structural inequalities and ensure access to support.
- Reparations for slavery and segregation.
- Greater investment into rehabilitation services to reduce recidivism.
- A focus on restorative justice.
- A ‘big conversation’ on issues of economic inequality, racial inequality, colonialism, unaddressed trauma and patriarchy, and how these impact the totality of society and contribute to crime and violence.
There are no easy or quick solutions to this problem. There can be no shortcuts.
