#Rihanna'sPoorIrishfamily #RedLegs #BarbadosIrish

There is a strong sense of community among the invisible Irish of Barbados. The community is located in Martins Bay in St. John, where the descendants of the 50,000 men, and women that landed in Barbados, between Sixteen Hundred and Twenty and Sixteen Hundred and Twenty Seven as emigrants, merchants, indentured servants, and prisoners sold into a lifetime of servitude call home.
Some have been able to assimilate into the community at large, while others haven’t.
Those that have not been able to, stand out as anomalies. The community is somewhat endogamous, choosing to marry among themselves. There are about four hundred residents in the community that are known locally as Red Legs.
Most of the Red Legs live in poverty, and are prey to infections and diseases. It was reported that this is due to their poor diet and lack of dental care.
Though Barbados has free healthcare, many people in this community still suffer from hemophilia, which is an inherited genetic disorder that impairs the body’s ability to make blood clots, a process needed to stop bleeding. Premature deaths due to excess sugary foods have aroused high rates of diabetes, which has caused blindness among many in the community.
School absenteeism, poor health, and the poverty reinforced by the little ownership of land, along with shortage of employment opportunities, and maintenance of large families result in greater food shortages, which has had adverse effects on the community.
So why hasn’t the Red Legs of Barbados been able to shake the shackles of poverty, and move into the mainstream?
Could it be an inability to mingle with the other inhabitants of the island? Whatever the reason, Ireland has reached out to this community and is in the process of helping.
Rihanna’s great aunt also lives in this community, and some readers sum up how they feel seeing a superstar like Rihanna, having relatives live under these conditions.

Photos:
TheIrishSun.com
NewsBarbados.com
Sheena Jolly
IrishAmericanMagazine.com
NYT.com
TV122
The Merrymen

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