It must be understood that in France, people have the right to strike. And they do. Often. But, it seems to me that there is an entirely different dimension to strikes in Guadeloupe that is absent in those that take place in France métropolitain.
It is a dimension that is immediately noticeable. For one, there is racialization (1) of the conflict. The UGTG often frames the conflict as one between Blacks and Whites, despite the fact that the grand majority of people representing the State - including the President of the Regional Council, and those forming the Association of Mayors - are Antillais. It is clear that the history of slavery and colonization are important factors in explaining why strikes in Guadeloupe are different than in France métropolitain. "The Guadeloupean community was born from conflict, from one of its particularly atrocious forms that is colonization. The colonial reality was consistently marked by conflicts - often violent and bloody - at every level (2). In this context, the strike is not simply a conflict over economic interests, but an extension of the initial conflict that is colonization.
It is no wonder, then, that this movement condones its more agressive, or even violent, elements. Still, academic justifications are far from reality. I find it somewhat scandalous that Elie Domota, the spokesman for Liyannaj, has not condemned the violence (and indeed, has said that it was natural).
To be perfectly honest, the entire thing is extremely draining. I don't mean physically, even though we have been rationing since the beginning of the strike. But the low murmuring of violence... and to be held hostage by a foreign history, its burdens, pain, recriminations, hate, bitterness...there is a strong urge to flee.
And I do flee...I leave tomorrow morning for the United States. But I am very nervous that we will run into trouble on the road. There may be roadblocks, and there have been reports of violence at roadblocks. M. assures me that we will have no trouble, but that's just man talk. I am hoping for the best.
(1) ra⋅cial⋅ize/ˈreɪʃəˌlaɪz/
–verb (used with object), -ized, -iz⋅ing.
- to impose a racial interpretation on; place in a racial context.
- to perceive, view, or experience in a racial context.
- to categorize or differentiate on the basis of race.
(2) "La communauté guadeloupéene est née du conflit, de l'une de ses formes particulièrement atroce qu'est la colonisation. La réalité coloniale a éte en permanence émaillée de conflits de tous ordres, souvent violents et sanglants."
Georges Combe, L'explosion conflictuelle. De la signification des conflits sociaux, Etudes Guadeloupéenes, No.5, février 1992.
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