Errol Barrow
First Prime Minister of Barbados · 1920–1987
Who is Errol Barrow?
Errol Walton Barrow was born on 21 January 1920 in Barbados and became the country's founding Prime Minister. He served as a navigator with the Royal Air Force during the Second World War before studying law and economics at the London School of Economics. Returning home, he entered politics and founded the Democratic Labour Party in 1955, becoming Premier of Barbados in 1961. Under his leadership, Barbados achieved full independence from the United Kingdom on 30 November 1966, and Barrow became its first Prime Minister. Days later, addressing the United Nations General Assembly on the occasion of Barbados's admission, he declared that the new nation would be "friends of all, satellites of none," a phrase that came to define its foreign policy of principled non-alignment during the Cold War. His government introduced free secondary education and other social reforms that reshaped Barbadian society. After a period out of office, he was returned to power in the 1986 general election but died in office on 1 June 1987. He is honored as a National Hero of Barbados, and Errol Barrow Day is observed annually as a public holiday.
Sources: Caribbean Trade Law and Development, "The Rt. Ex. Errol Barrow: Barbadian Statesman, Caribbean Visionary" · The Caribbean Council, "Friends of all, satellites of none" · Nation News, "Remembering Barrow: Quotes by Errol Barrow"