The chairman of the Human Rights Commission has made a heartfelt plea for Bermuda to heal its racial problems which he said were worse than the southern states of America.

Speaking at Thursday night's meeting on Constitutional change, Reverend Goodwin Smith of the New Testament Church of God said it was time for whites to reach out but he feared the race divide was widening. Rev. Smith made the speech after an audience member had complained about how race was creeping into the issue.

Musician Rob Berry said: "One of the things which bothers me, and I think it bothers a lot of white folk is this black/white thing.

"I am a musician, we play protest songs about the unfairness of things and I am really disappointed that tonight people felt the need to bring the white/black thing up.

"I am being accused of things that happened in the past. But I am a young white Bermudian, we didn't have anything to do with these things.

"I was born in 1963 and I was a little boy when the constitutional changes were happening. "I would be delighted if I could feel more included by this Government and I don't think the Government is to blame for making me feel like that but I think there is a general feeling in Bermuda and I wish it would change, I really do.'' Rev. Smith then took up the theme. He said:"Until Bermuda faces the fact that we have racial problems I think we can understand why we have problems in the political field.'' He said he had faced colour bars in his early years in the church but was now recruiting whites for his new church.

"It has always been a fact that black people have usually been the ones to integrate -- integration has come by us going over.

"I have had problems with getting whites coming over to us -- yet in my movement, just about everyone in our headquarters is white.

"I will be opening my church very soon and you will see that most of those leaders are white leaders.

"We are more prejudiced in Bermuda than you get in the southern states in the United States.

"For years we have glossed over it. You can find the meeting which was held a few nights ago by the UBP and look at the ration of the numbers.

"We have a bad situation and I am talking about a black and white situation.

"We have been more divided about black and white since the PLP went in power.

We were doing a little bit better when the UBP was in power but that was no credit to the UBP.

"It's because they are considered an all black political party -when you have black folk in power everybody is afraid but they have no right to be afraid.

What are you afraid of?'' Rev. Smith said he was speaking from the heart and had no political axe to grind because he wasn't aligned to any political party.

"I can't help saying what I am saying -- we have to show the world that Bermuda's together -- that some white folk need to join the PLP and stand up and be like David Allen, so we can be like the Democrats and Republicans in the United States which are neither black or white.

"It's about time we did this, and if we don't your sons and daughters are going to grow up and 32 years from now will still be fighting the same thing.

"I plead to white people in this Island, bite the bullet, tell the truth and let's join hands.'' Premier Jennifer Smith then told the audience: "I believe the dark is before the dawn and dawn is just around the corner.

"I regard it as a good sign that white Bermudians feel free to come to a meeting and express themselves.'' She said the fact that blacks and whites were discussing issues together at a mixed meeting was progress and wouldn't have happened five or ten years ago.

"It is difficult and sometimes we are hurt sometimes but I believe Bermuda is moving forward.

"I think we will get to the point where we all regard ourselves as Bermudians and we will feel free to join political parties based on the fact that we agree with their principles and their policies and not based on colour.''