On May 15, 1969, the Jamaican government barred Guyanese scholar Dr. Walter Rodney from returning to his teaching post at the University of the West Indies. This move, dubbed the “Rodney Affair,” triggered student protests and riots in Kingston and beyond. Rodney, a Marxist historian and author of How Europe Underdeveloped Africa, was seen as a threat for his radical ideas and grassroots engagement with the poor. His ban sparked a new wave of political awareness among Caribbean youth and intellectuals. The event also underscored the colonial residue in post-independence Caribbean governance. May 15 marks the start of what became a regional turning point in Black consciousness and resistance to elite suppression of revolutionary ideas.
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