The UWI Regional Headquarters, Jamaica W.I. Friday, August 21, 2026—The following statement is issued by Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of The University of the West Indies (UWI).
End of Arday’s Days
Oh, what a hard day!
Jason jettisoned from an ancient throne
stoned and thrown,
a bridge, ‘ca’m’ caustic waters
What a bleeding blue day!
bright Knight, brutus knives
white parchment soaks black blood
pressed, persistent, pursuing
Oh, the evil Empire that knows no setting sun
high Noon in the Wild Wild West
rage, rage, rising from the slave code tomb, eye wide shut we gaze
an eclipse of an African son.
The public destruction of the living and life of this young, accomplished scholar has resonated globally as a gruesome, networked catastrophe. It comes in the aftermath of the United Nations General Assembly’s resolution that deemed chattelisation of enslaved Africans the ‘gravest crime against humanity’. It is impossible to separate the loss of Professor Jason Arday’s life from the truth embedded in the resolution. Anti-black racism at its most inhumane and life-destroying intensity has always been implemented by the minds and mostly invisible hands within public institutions.
Such a ferocious force is not random. It finds enemies by targeting elevated persons for public humiliation and elimination. First, your living is destroyed; then life is stripped of sustaining support. Individuals and institutions join in an unrelenting orgy of brutus-like frenzy until breathlessness is assured.
The university cannot easily set aside the tangled web of warfare unleashed upon its member. The gauntlet has befallen Cambridge University today, but it will fall elsewhere tomorrow. One only has to remember how the Vice-Chancellor at Liverpool University in 1947 did not support the recommendation that Dr Arthur Lewis be appointed Professor of Economics, having erupted as an erstwhile London University doctoral graduate and lecturer. Britain had no black professors, and he did not wish Liverpool to be the first. Manchester University grabbed him. He went on to win a Nobel Prize in Economics.
The systemic problem remains. Many older British universities are seeking to come to terms with truths about their active intellectual support for slavery, colonisation, and apartheid. Research and run rather than repair has become a common policy response. The challenge before us is to answer the question of whether a university can claim excellence with an unethical race ceiling at the core of its collegial culture. Excellence is no longer seen as confined to curriculum, teaching, research ranking, and student satisfaction. It is equally about the ethical values of pedagogy and genuine commitment to the enlightenment of humanity.
The ending of Arday’s life resonates everywhere as evidence of the lack of institutional and public support for a human who deserved a right to public help. This is not a ‘who done it’ mystery. Collective ownership is the place to begin looking for the weapon. His body will join the million others buried in the colonial casket. When Bob Marley asked that we emancipate ourselves from mental slavery, black folks embraced it as a message for them. Truth is, he was singing to colonisers as well.
About The University of the West Indies
The University of the West Indies (The UWI) has played a crucial role in Caribbean development for over 75 years, consistently contributing to the improvement of the well-being of people across the region.
Established in 1948 as a university college of London in Jamaica, with just 33 medical students, UWI has grown into an internationally respected, global university with nearly 50,000 students. Today, it boasts five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda, and its Global Campus, along with international centres in partnership with universities across North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe.
The UWI offers over 1000 certificate, diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Culture, Creative and Performing Arts, Food and Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities and Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology, Social Sciences, and Sport. As the leading university in the Caribbean, it is home to the largest pool of intellect and expertise in the region, dedicated to addressing the critical issues facing both the Caribbean and the wider world.
Validated by its inclusion in the Times Higher Education (THE) annual rankings since 2018, The UWI has affirmed its position as one of the top universities globally. It stands out as the only English-speaking institution in the Caribbean featured in four of THE's prestigious ranking lists. The World University Rankings evaluate over 2,000 research-focused universities worldwide, while the Golden Age University Rankings highlight institutions established between 50 and 80 years ago. The Latin America Rankings focus specifically on universities within Latin America and the Caribbean. Additionally, the Impact Rankings assess universities based on their contributions to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
This recognition has also springboarded the establishment of The UWI’s International School for Development Justice (ISD), a global online graduate business school aimed at preparing future leaders for sustainable development.
The UWI is an SDG-engaged university consistently recognised among the best in the world. Discover more at www.uwi.edu.
