BY JONIQUE GAYNOR, Staff Reporter
WHY DOES DRAMA unfold every time I set foot on public transportation? Is it me or what? One is certain though, the more I travel, the more I learn about human nature.
I know that racism is something that has not died, and perhaps never will, but some people's racist attitudes border dangerously on illiteracy. The other day I was on a bus, and a tourist, that happened to be white, also boarded the bus. Before he came on-board though, I noticed that he spoke at length with the conductor, as if trying to be sure that this bus was indeed the one he should take. He finally boarded big bags and all.
The bus set off and we travelled incident free for most of the journey. Upon reaching the Harbour View roundabout, however, the tourist indicated that he was going to the airport and wanted to be let off. The driver, being ever so accommodating, was ready to 'jam' the bus along the sidewalk and allow the man to get off. He quickly changed his mind when he noticed two police officers a few feet away. Since the tourist was not too sure of where he was going, the driver decided to turn onto the airport road, to show the tourist where he could catch a bus to the airport.
Before he could even move, however, he was pulled over by the police and ticketed. The passengers did not take kindly to this, and began hurling insults at the driver. The tourist quickly exited the bus and like Lot, walked away without looking back, leaving the driver to face the heat. "Look how di driver mek di white bwoy mek im get ticket, you can bet seh if it was a black man im wudda neva turn offa di road, yu sell wi out driva, yu mek white man enslave yu," shouted the passengers.
LOST SOUL
The driver attempted to explain that he was only trying to help the lost soul and that if they were in a similar position, they'd want him to do the same. They refused to see it that way.They continued, "Da bwoy deh a CIA ennuh driva, u tink im nuh know whe im a go? Dem bwoy deh have dem road map." The bantering and arguing continued all the way into downtown Kingston. The obviously upset driver said nothing more.
Now it's understood that people want to go about their business on a Sunday evening, but the passengers displayed nothing even resembling patience and tolerance. The man was not familiar with the area and only wanted some guidance. It was foolish of the driver to stall before the officers, but he was only trying to be a good Jamaican Samaritan.
This incident has shown just how intolerant we are of strangers and how unwilling we are to go out of our way to help others. I can understand the people's displeasure but why did it have to turn into an issue about race? We need to be more considerate to visitors and strangers as we never know who may be an 'angel in disguise'.
Do
you have a problem? Is something bothering
you? Write to 
