Poems of the Week

Bye-Bye, Barbados!

by Mike Mesterton-Gibbons

“In Barbados, it’s out with the queen, in with a president as the Caribbean island nation
becomes the first Commonwealth realm in nearly three decades to declare itself a republic.”

The Washington Post

Barbados to the monarch: Toodle-oo!
You are no longer head of state round here,
Elizabeth Regina! We are through—
Britannia’s rule belongs to yesteryear!
Your firms can still invest in our unchained
Economy, Your Highness—though we will
Be tempted to impound the profits gained
As reparations for historic ill! …
Regina to Barbadians: Bye-bye!
Be prosperous without a queen—I know
A president is hipper than am I! …
Don’t follow in Guyana’s footsteps though,
Or you may later rue that you had been
So keen to wish good riddance to your Queen!