Businesswoman Makeda Mikael is highlighting the plight of Antiguans who return home and procedures health screening at the airport.
In an Observation published in the Daily Observer today Mikael notes that blacks arriving at the Airport must wait for white tourists to be finished and sent on their way.
She has called for the appointment of COVID Czar to oversee all areas of management of the pandemic. Here is the her opinion:
“Something is wrong with the health processing of returning Antiguans and other black people arriving at V. C. Bird International Airport. There is a black line which has to wait until all the white tourists are finished and sent on their way.
The black persons, even if they are now sporting US passports with bookings at authorised tourism-approved properties, are then grilled and forced to sign a document which threatens lock-up if they are found outside their lodging. Meanwhile, the white tourists do not have to visit under that threat. What bothers me is the absence of welcome which this policy extends to homecomers who have just left places striving to believe that Black Lives Matter! It brings to mind the pleasant surprise I got many years ago when visiting Tortola and hearing an announcement from Immigration asking nationals to proceed to the front of the line. It felt good to see nationals getting recognition on arrival, although I appreciate in Antigua there is a CARICOM line. The health area in the arrivals will require more space and a swifter processing system if we are to cope with the return of wide-bodied aircraft.
The arrival of several aircraft within the short period of time as previously scheduled will only cause chaos and passenger frustration after four and eight-hour flights. Forward planning for these long haul flights, and the real possibility of children passengers will require more areas opening up for emergencies caused by long waits. Bathroom facilitation for arriving passengers is crucial with constant sanitising and Covid controlled garbage collection and disposal an imperative if we are to maintain the health of the airport cleaners and maintenance personnel. The protocols of the aircraft sanitising and garbage disposal is paramount, and those personnel must also be properly equipped with personal protection clothing just like the nurses.
The aircraft is handled in countries that are high on the Covid list of contagion by persons who may be nonsymptomatic but infected, and there may be passengers and crew who may also be contagious carriers. Aircraft cleaners and all who touch the aircraft must also be fully protected. As all of this comes at a cost, the government needs to meet with all operators to find ways of adding a Covid charge to keep our borders open.
All in all, Antigua needs a Covid Czar to oversee all areas of this crisis, including Covid Operating Costs quickly. After all, it could become ingrained politically in a way where health protocols are dispensed by the politician, and thus suspect.”
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Yadda yadda when the shoe is on the other foot and when we are in the position we are no better in treating our own!
Whether it is during or out of covid blacks treat their own different to whites. In a worst way if I may add.
You said it. Black people do not respect other blacks. BLM is of no interest to me when blacks are murdering other blacks. They should never have come up with that slogan. Those that they are sending out that message to are sitting on their funny
bones laughing every time a black slaughters a black.
@sssndra- Your comment is very ignorant, and hateful. Black lives matter everyday. All races kill each other. Nevertheless, in Antigua we usually don’t have to worry about racism. But the classism and colorism is still in full effect.
Lord. The black people in america complain about everything. If a fly pass and sheet they complain. Now the black people I’m the Caribbean islands are doing the same. Follow fashion kiss dog battam. The police In the vi arresting teo guys. Some crowd stood around shouting BLM slogan. The cops confiscated machine guns and other firearms. Now those same guns could have been used on any one of the people chanting BLM. They would be chanting a different tune, then.
@sssndra- Education is a wonderful things. Get some.
Blacks and whites must NOT be treated differently. Indeed, Antiguans must be given preference.
Three cheers and amen to that.
Please stop treating the black residence differently
This is untrue. I traveled from Canada via Miami. Black mothers with young children were put ahead. Otherwise it was one uniform line with no division. The nurse was excellent and reassuring. I was dealt with swiftly to see the doctor and head to immigration & customs. I had a pleasant experience for such a challenging process.
I guess you just called Makeda a liar. But then again she is reporting from her observation. So who knows. A black travel advisor just the other day praised the nurses and the entire airport handling of this protocol.
This type of treatment of our black returning Antiguan was the status quote long before COVID. This racist treatment must stop, we have to value ourselves. The white tourist can be infected with the virus and just allowing them to run loose just for short term gains will prove to be the death of us all. It’s time to stop separating and treating our own with such disregard.
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