Guyana Today
Guyana produces much of the world's bauxite, which is a component of aluminum. Other resources include diamonds, gold, and hardwood. Mining is an important economic activity. Similar to the U.S., the governent is a republic. Like all other countries, we have had some good leaders and some bad leaders. Guyana is truly a multicultural society. There are people of Indian and African descent living peacefully side by side. Skin color is not as big of an issue in Guyana, and in our experience, racism is practically nonexistent. In fact, we have a saying: "As long as you're here, you're family." Although there is a large Guyanese population in Schenectady, most of them are of Indian descent and from the cities on the east coast. On the other hand, most of the Guyanese immigrants at Shaker High School are from more rural areas. Guyana has two rainy seasons, which often produce floods. In 2005, flooding devastated large areas of Guyana, destroying its infrastructure and dislocating 192,000 people.
