Gayle Says Public Will to Stop Violence is Strong in Belize

Herbert Gayle

According to the expert, Belize has the exceptional public will to do away with violence and that’s a critical component of positive change. But the time to start moving is sooner rather than later.

Dr. Herbert Gayle, Anthropologist of Social Violence, UWI Jamaica

“Things are becoming better worldwide. The problem we’re having though is that while humans are becoming better the weapons they are using to kill and harm each other are more effective, so there’s a spill-off. So we’re becoming better as humans biologically but we have better equipment to do a better job on each other and therefore the struggle continues. In Belize the main progress has been this idea of people wanting to do better – public will. I’ve said it everywhere. I’ve been to many countries and Belize still has the best public will I have seen in working with violence. Yes it may sound bad – you can imagine what happens in other countries right? Once we have this public will, once people agitate and want to see things, then there is going to be far more progress in terms of change. The first thing that we have to do is make the first step and step off. Even if we don’t run as fast as Usain Bolt you still have to kick out of the blocks. Belize is just still in the blocks. The muscles are taut, the legs and the brain say let’s go, but we have to have the push off stage before we can get into the stage called drive. Countries like Australia and Canada are in the stage called drive, but we have to decide how long we are going to stay in the blocks because the race can be finished and we don’t leave. So we have to make a decision and there has to be some idea in our heads that the time is now. It can’t be tomorrow.”