Kathy Scott
Greetings to the 10th Annual Symposium of The Walter Rodney Foundation
On this the 10th Anniversary of the Walter Rodney Symposium, I am extremely happy to send these greetings on behalf of Walter’s siblings – his brothers Lawrence, Albert (Eddy), Hubert, Keith, and Donald, and sister Kathleen (Babs); his nieces and nephews, great nieces and nephews; and numerous cousins.
On occasions like these, I like to remember those who have gone before us, as they made our success possible. As we celebrate Walter, I want to acknowledge two of the most important persons in his life - his parents. His father, Edward Percival (1901-1979), and his mother, Pauline Agatha, born 1913. This is her centenary year. Happy birthday, brother, Dad, Mom.
Now for those who are still among us, and for you who are present. I do not want to delve into Walter’s accomplishments or my memories of him. I would like to share with you the contents of an article that a friend sent to me a few months ago. The article was captioned “Belgium to Probe Murder of African Hero Lumumba”. The article was posted on Thursday December 12, 2012. The world learned of Patrice Lumumba’s murder on January 17, 1961. A period of 50 years. My immediate response was WOW, At Last!! The news was gratifying. It gave me hope. At the same time, it made me acutely aware of the fact that we still have a lot of work to do.
I am sure that all of you would agree that we would like to read an article one day with a caption that reads “Government To Probe Assassination Of Guyanese Hero Walter Rodney”. Brothers and sisters, we have to work for this. The task so far has not been easy. His son Shaka could attest to this. In 1993 he mounted a one-man mission in Guyana in pursuit of this goal. To date, to the best of my knowledge, that goal has not been achieved. But, it is not a ‘task impossible’. It would have to be as untiring as the one undertaken on behalf of Patrice Lumumba. It is a task that must be undertaken on behalf of Walter’s children and his grandchildren. It is a task that must be undertaken on behalf of his brother Donald, whose life was forever disrupted because of this tragedy. It is a task that must be undertaken on behalf of the hundreds of young Guyanese men – particularly those of African descent – who became victims of the drug culture as it developed in Guyana in the opening years of the 21st century. It is a task that must be undertaken by those of us who earlier this month re-dedicated ourselves to ending Violence Against Women everywhere; and equality and justice for all. It is a task that must be undertaken if we want to hold true to keeping Walter’s legacy alive. Most of all it is a task that must be undertaken because we all cared so much for Walter.
Kathy R Scott is the only sister of Walter Rodney and the fifth of six children. Kathy is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Social Sciences at Howard University in Washington, DC. She is currently Graduate Assistant, Dept. of Sociology & Anthropology. She obtained her Master of Arts in Sociology, Howard University and Bachelor of Science in Social Work, with distinction at the University of Guyana. Prior to emigrating to the US she was employed with agencies focusing on Domestic Violence and Responsible Parenthood. She was also a Part-time Lecturer at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Guyana.