The Majority Rule Heritage Trail
Ramble Description
The year 1967 strikes a high note in the life of the Bahamian people. Fairer franchise and electoral arrangements gave ordinary citizens new room for political expression. A sidelined racial majority, helped by that fresh dispensation, came to political power. Observers who respect the struggle that was entailed and the sacrifices that were made in order to bring about change have called for the story of this popular mobilization to be shared more fully. At the University of The Bahamas this virtual Majority Rule Heritage Trail takes a first step towards answering that call for information and education. The trail points to some of the places and objects that mattered in the fight to broaden avenues of opportunity and brings forward voices that help us to grasp the roles played by spaces and things. The numbers that accompany each place or object suggest a recommended walking trail which would take participants from Parliament Square and conclude at the Reinhard Hotel on Baillou Hill Road, just over a one-mile walk. Clicking on the marker icons that are present within the map reveals the correlated number along the trail. Students who follow the trail will find narrative that helps them with research projects and examination preparation. For Bahamians of all ages, audio recordings allow places thought to be dreary or familiar to exhibit themselves in a fresh or richer light. Image and story and voice all enable tourists, whether actual or digital, to start to experience local history. In time the trail will feature many more sites and lend access to many more voices. For now, in this fiftieth anniversary year of Majority Rule, welcome to the House of Assembly and to its Speaker’s Mace, to Bethel Baptist Church, to the Southern Recreation Grounds, to the Carlton House, to the Reinhard Hotel, and to their array of accompanying voices!