Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/187632
•pg_13-27__BMT_pg3-58 9/25/13 1:08 AM Page 27 the mantle of equality. Thomas told the story of a guest who arrived at a Fairfield Inn & Suites a few years back – a hotel Thomas owned in North Carolina. While Thomas was standing in the hotel lobby talking to his white general manager, a guest arrived and asked Thomas to get the bags out of his car assuming Thomas was the bellman. "The man wasn't a racist," said Thomas, "he had no ill will, that's how he saw me." Thomas implored the audience to change those perceptions. Thomas gave a history lesson of how far Blacks had come in 60 when they weren't allowed to own hotels and sent this simple message, "you today are enlightened. You can own businesses and be quite successful doing so. Your leader and your inspiration is Mike Roberts, Bob Johnson and your new dashing field general Norm Jenkins – follow them, be inspired by them." THE SPOTLIGHT Another highlight of attending NABHOOD is access to world leaders. Right Honorable Perry G. Christie, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance for the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, gave a stirring speech on the bonds that link Minister used to drive home the point that Bahamians and Americans are inextricably linked. "So the possibilities are so profound and the obligation of governments of our country is so incredibly pressing, how do we go about developing a country which has an appeal to people such as yourselves, who have made a commitment to business, a commitment to developing hotels and restaurants?" It's a question Christie left no doubt he takes very seriously. There is a $400 million investment to expand the airport in Nassau. New Providence will be adding 2,500 hotel rooms. In short, The Bahamas is a place where you can invest and make money. "We are looking for new products all the time," said Christie. Not only is The Bahamas open for business, it's easy to move money and supplies in and out of the country to spur investment. He encouraged the audience to work with The Bahamas to not only develop hotels, but also restaurants and other businesses. As an example, "Tyler Perry came to The Bahamas and spent $100 million dollars developing an island." HONORABLE PERRY G. CHRISTIE Bahamians and Americans and how we are related through ancestry and common purpose. "Our country understands the connection with your country," says Christie. He referenced how many important Bahamian personalities who have established roots in America, starting with former Los Angeles Lakers star forward Rick Fox, who was sitting in the audience, and the great actor Sidney Poitier. W.E.B. Dubois' great grandfather came from a little island in the Bahamas called Long Cay. "When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was writing the draft of his noble prize winning speech, he came to Bimini," said Christie. These are just some of the many examples the Prime • • • • CALENDAR OF EVENTS • • • • Congressional Black Caucus 43rd Annual Legislative Conference – NABHOOD classes on hotel ownership – Washington DC – September 18 – 21, 2013 South American Hotel and Tourism Investment Conference – September 23 – 24, 2013 – JW Marriott – Bogota, Columbia African Hotel Investment Forum – September 23 – 25, 2013 – Intercontinental Hotel – Nairobi, Kenya HVS Caribbean Hotel Investment Conference and Operations Summit (CHICOS) – November 7-8, 2013 – Hard Rock Hotel – Punta Cana, Dominican Republic B M & T ••• September/October 2013 ••• www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 27