CHARLES KONG SOO
When people hear the word “Beetham”, it conjures up nightmarish images of an area stigmatised with rampant poverty, crime, and violence.
With acrid smoke billowing from the landfill and gun smoke emanating from the enclave, motorists drive through the Beetham Highway gauntlet at maximum speed with their windows up and car doors locked fearful of missiles thrown at their vehicles or debris strewn on the road in attempted robberies in gridlock traffic.
Motorists would rather drive out of the highway sacrificing a rim rather than risk being robbed trying to change a blown tyre on the Beetham. The memory of the trauma comedian Nikki Crosby and other motorists experienced when they were trapped in the protest along the Beetham Highway and missiles were thrown at their vehicles on November 23, 2017, is still fresh in many citizens' minds.
There are many shining examples of hope and potential for good in Beetham Gardens, however, that go unnoticed.
Councillor for Phase 4 and 5 in Beetham Gardens Adanna Griffith-Gordon hosted more than 30 children from schools in the area to see the Black Panther movie at MovieTowne last week Saturday.
24 of the 26 students from the Excel Beetham Estate Government Primary School who took the Secondary School Assessment (SEA) examinations in 2017 had achieved places in secondary schools.
Kareem Marcelle is the first-time winner of the 2017 Makandal Daaga Scholarship at the University of the West Indies (UWI) and is currently pursuing his LLB at UWI.
There are small steps being taken to change the mindset of residents in the community, the negative “Hell Yard” in Phase 4 and 5 has been changed to the more positive “Hope Garden” signs in the area.
When the Sunday Guardian visited the area on Tuesday around 5 pm, residents returning home from work and members of the community stopped by the neighbourhood pie man and doubles men who were doing a brisk trade at Phase 4. A hamburger and hot dog vendor was now setting up his cart. If someone in Beetham wanted coffee, chicken and chips or sandwich from a fast food franchise he would either have to go to Port-of-Spain or Morvant.
Taking advantage of this food marginalization, entrepreneurs did not wait for a handout, they saw an opportunity to fill this need and small shops, cafés, bars and vendors began to emerge selling street food, local chicken and chips, BBQ, doubles, pies, corn soup, and drinks in their community.
There was a boutique store on the corner, what the locals call “Tempo Street,” from the doubles and pie vendors. A little girl went to the adjacent store and bought a bottle of bleach. A grandfather with his grandson holding several dollar bills went into the store to buy lollipops. Young boys rode up on their bicycles to buy from the vendors. Several children rode on hoverboards through the streets and the police vehicle patrols were regular.
Speaking briefly with the Sunday Guardian while attending to his customers, Carli, of Carli and Tricia Doubles, said “I born and grew up in Phase 4, I love eating doubles. I didn't see anybody selling doubles in the Beetham, the closest place is Port-of-Spain or Morvant and Barataria.
“So we 'try ah ting' and began selling doubles here two years now.
“It's good if you could find something you like doing and make a little money too.”
While Carli cashed, his assistant “Barra Kuda” put the doubles together.
Mike the pie man, also from the community, said he was selling his delicious chicken, fish, beef, and potato pies on the spot for three years and it was honest and fulfilling job.
Derek Huggins, chairman of the Beetham Community Action Council, said the area was even bypassed by the Cable Company which expanded its services to Barataria first, but residents now have cable access.
He said Beetham had its own J'Ouvert celebrations and blocko parties, and besides the food vendors, there was an Internet café, joiner, fisherman, and hairdresser in the community.
Huggins, a member of the Citizen Security Programme (CSP), said the Beetham also produced doctors, lawyers, politicians, pan people, police officers, prison officers, soldiers, teachers, bank personnel, sports people, government employees, media workers, dancers, and entertainers.
He said unemployment was a major issue for many youths in the area and crime had befallen on some young men.
'Youth afraid to leave community because of rivalry with Picton Street'
Pamela Williams, a teacher at the All In One Child Development Centre, said many young people were not working, this was compounded by them being afraid to venture out of the community because of the rivalry between Picton Street and Beetham, and many of them are even afraid to enter Port-of-Spain.
Williams said some youth go to learn skills and trade at Servol and the T&T Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).
The Phase 4 resident said there were also two seamstresses and a tailor in Beetham, and some youths worked at the dump sorting copper and scrap iron.
Williams said when motorists' vehicles shut down on the highway or spun out of control in an accident, residents came out and helped them.
Keon Isaac, 16, from Phase 4 said he hustles in the dump from Monday to Friday recycling objects and sometimes finds money and gold, wedding rings, and even coffins.
Carli the doubles man said even he and other adults also went foraging in the dump when “hard times” hit them.
Keon Daniel, 22, from Phase 5 who also hustled in the dump said the most important thing for youth in the area was jobs and elevating themselves.
Sarah Beckett, from Phase 3, said in order to get on to the councillor for Beetham/Picton Akil Audain to get help, residents had to go to his office in Laventille which was at war with Beetham, and women as well as men were not taking that risk.
Janet Raymond said sometimes when self-help programmes were running in the community, Phase 3 residents were unaware of these programmes while the other Phases knew about them.
Councillor: Literacy and self-help programmes available
When the Sunday Guardian contacted councillor for Phase 4 and 5 in Beetham Gardens Adanna Griffith-Gordon on Wednesday, she had just returned from the play park in the Beetham to oversee the painting of tables and chairs there.
She said there were literacy programmes conducted at the Community Centre in Phase 2 operated by Officer Charles from the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF), which had a group called Hearts and Minds.
Griffith-Gordon said the Beetham Police Youth Club and residents such as Stephenson Westfield, president of the Beetham Gardens Community Village Council also played an active role in the community.