A petition for the reinstatement of consul general to New York Lorenzo Harewood is circulating online seeking 200 signatories.
A letter to Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley is also being prepared, demanding that the diaspora be heard before any permanent replacement is confirmed.
Up to press time, 105 had signed, as a growing number of Barbadians in New York are preparing to boycott tomorrow’s Barbados 60th Independence Jubilee Gala at the Marina Del Rey in the Bronx, in protest of the sudden recall of Harewood – a man some in the diaspora are calling the best consul general they have ever had.
Harewood, who was appointed consul general to New York in 2024, was informed of his recall by letter on Monday. He broke the news to staff at a meeting that same day and sent a recorded video message on Facebook to the Barbadian community, thanking them for their support. By then, the shock had already begun to spread through a community that had spent the weekend celebrating with him.
The Weekend Nation understands that deputy consul general Lisa Jaggernauth is now acting in the position.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator Chris Sinckler, speaking from Turkey where he is attending COP31, confirmed that Jaggernauth will perform the duties of consul general “until such time as the Prime Minister makes a new appointment”.
No reason has been given for the recall.
Speed of his departure
For a diaspora that had just watched Harewood preside over a flag-raising ceremony at Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn last Saturday, and a church service on Sunday, both part of Barbados’ 60th anniversary of Independence and fifth as a republic, the speed of his departure is being questioned.
“It breaks my heart to know that they just ripped him out. It’s like ripping something out your heart,” said Eudene Yarde-Hope, a Barbadian-born uniformed officer who has launched an online petition demanding Harewood’s reinstatement.
Yarde-Hope, who has lived in the United States since she was 17, now serves in a New York law enforcement department.
She recalled that she and colleagues from the FDNY (New York City Fire Department), the Department of Corrections and the NYPD (New York City Police Department) had turned out in force on Saturday to support their country and their departments and to witness something she said had never happened in her more than three decades in America.
“To hear, two days after, that he’s no longer our consul general, it was shocking. It was mind-blowing. After all the stuff he planned for our 60th anniversary, for our fifth year as a republic, I can’t believe this is happening.”
She asked: “What did he do so badly that you have to take him away? He has been doing so good here.”
Yarde-Hope recounted the story of a woman who told her she had lived in the US for 40 years and never attended a Barbadian community event until Harewood’s flag-raising drew her to Brooklyn.
“I was proud, as a black woman, a person from Barbados, a uniformed person from my department, to stand there with my co-workers and see our flag,” she said. “I just can’t understand what happened.”
The people’s CG
Yarde-Hope said Harewood called her personally to congratulate her when she was promoted, having seen the news on her Facebook page.
“Who does that? He is the people’s CG (consul general) . . . . We need somebody that knows the people . . . that don’t mind going into other people’s houses and eating a good meal, or having time to talk about anything, outside playing road tennis, outside playing dominoes. We are the people.
“People in Connecticut, Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, California, Canada, England have been talking. He has done something that I have never seen anybody ever do,” she added.
Barbadian artist Empress Poetry, who lives in New York, was equally blunt about what Harewood’s recall means for a community she says he single-handedly reenergised.
“Before Harewood arrived in 2024, Barbados’ culture in New York had died,” she said. “He has been doing some magnificent stuff as far as getting Barbados back on the map. Barbados has not had the kind of shine that this CG has given us in recent times.”
She credited him with drawing young Barbadians, including those of Barbadian descent who had never engaged with the island, back into the community, with many of them now attending events and highlighting the island on social media. She also praised him for putting the Barbadian-owned Aunt Deb’s restaurant on the map in New York.
“And then Sunday we had the church service – everything went great. And then Monday we woke up hearing he’s gone. It was so amazing to watch him with the people. He was the consummate professional.”
Empress Poetry said the diaspora was now preparing to take its grievance directly to Mottley.
“We would like to hear from the Prime Minister as to why he was recalled. We would like her to know how this has impacted us.
“We are going to send her a letter just asking her to hear us. We know she makes the final decision,” she said.
Persistent efforts to reach Harewood since the news broke have been unsuccessful. (MB)
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