Prime Minister Philip Davis’s Remarks at the Opening of The Renovated Embassy of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas and the Naming of the Livingston B. Johnson Building

Friends, Fellow Bahamians, and Distinguished Guests,

There are lives that shape a nation far beyond their time.

For The Bahamas, one such life belongs to Livingstone Basil Johnson.

He was born on the island of Exuma in 1923, to Zachias and Catherina Johnson, people of quiet faith and determined spirit. 

From the beginning, he believed that discipline and learning could lift him far beyond the circumstances of his birth.

He worked, studied, and travelled in pursuit of knowledge, earning his place at the bar and later establishing himself as one of the most trusted legal minds of his generation. 

Yet what defined him most was not achievement, but service.

When independence came, and our young country sought its first voice in the world, Livingstone Johnson was asked to serve. He accepted without hesitation.

He became the first Bahamian Ambassador to the United States and our first representative to the United Nations. He came to Washington with no grand entourage, no long tradition of statecraft to draw upon, only his integrity and his belief that The Bahamas, small though it might be, could stand with pride among the nations of the world.

And so he did.

He won the respect of those who met him not through rhetoric or ceremony, but through quiet strength and reliability. He represented our country with dignity, intelligence, and grace.

He showed the world what kind of people we are.

It is in honour of that service, and the example he set, that we name this building the Livingstone B. Johnson Chancery.

His story speaks to the heart of who we are as Bahamians. 

It tells us that where you begin need not define where you end. 

It reminds us that humility and ambition can live side by side, that knowledge without purpose is hollow, and that service is the highest calling of a free people.

He was part of a generation that believed in duty, that believed the building of a nation required not noise but consistency, not power but principle.

He helped the world to see The Bahamas not as a collection of islands, but as a people capable of leadership and trust.

In an age of uncertainty, when the global order was shifting and independence still felt fragile, he gave us credibility through conduct.

And in doing so, he set a standard that should guide us still.

For nationhood, properly understood, is not a possession. 

It is a responsibility. It is the daily act of proving that our independence has meaning – through how we govern, how we treat each other, and how we engage with the world.

This Embassy stands as part of that proof. It is not simply a structure of walls and glass, but a living statement that The Bahamas will not retreat from the world, but will take its rightful place within it.

Here, our diplomats will represent a country that values honesty, fairness, and competence. They will speak for a people who are as warm as our waters and as determined as our ancestors who built this nation from the ground up.

This chancery will help shape our relationship with the United States, our closest neighbour and long-standing friend.

It will strengthen cooperation in areas that matter deeply to both of us – security, climate resilience, trade, and education.

It will remind all who enter that friendship between nations must be built not on sentiment, but on shared purpose.

The United States and The Bahamas are joined not only by geography, but by values – democracy, the rule of law, and the conviction that freedom must always serve justice.

That friendship has endured because it is grounded in mutual respect. 

Through hurricanes and crises, through triumphs and celebrations, we have stood together. And together we will continue to stand, building not just partnership, but trust.

To the Bahamian community living throughout America, this Embassy belongs to you as well.

You have brought the best of The Bahamas to the United States – your work ethic, your kindness, your faith, and your ambition. 

You have built families, businesses, and communities that honour the country that raised you.

Wherever you live, whatever you do, you carry the name of The Bahamas with you. 

You are living proof that the strength of our nation lies in its people.

This chancery will serve you. It will welcome you, support you, and stand ready to assist. It will remind you that your government sees you, values you, and takes pride in you.

You are part of this story. You are part of the mission of nationhood.

Livingstone Johnson understood that service is not about reward. It is about duty. He believed that true leadership is measured not by power, but by example.

He did not seek prominence, yet his work shaped how others saw our country. He did not chase attention, yet his conduct commanded respect.

He showed that strength can be quiet and that the truest patriotism is expressed not in words, but in steady, faithful service.

He believed that independence meant more than sovereignty. It meant responsibility – to live up to the ideals that brought freedom into being.

And that is the task that still faces us today.

The work of nationhood never ends. It is renewed in every generation, in every act of integrity, and in every public servant who treats the people’s trust as sacred.

To our American friends, let me say this. The Bahamas remains deeply committed to our shared goals: peace, prosperity, and justice.

We value our partnership not for its convenience, but for its conviction – the belief that nations working together in good faith can achieve more than any one can alone.

We know that the challenges ahead are serious: protecting our environment, expanding opportunity, keeping our people safe, and ensuring fairness in an uncertain world.

But we face those challenges with optimism, because we know that even small nations can lead when they act with clarity and purpose.

And The Bahamas intends to do exactly that.

When future generations of Bahamians walk through these doors and see the name Livingstone B. Johnson, may they remember what it stands for.

It stands for character. For integrity. For the belief that service to country is the highest form of honour.

He taught us that patriotism is not the waving of flags or the sound of applause. It is the daily practice of loyalty, honesty, and courage.

He believed that to serve your country well is to love it enough to hold it to its highest standard.

That belief built this nation.

And so, as we open this chancery, we affirm that standard again.

We will govern with fairness. We will engage with humility. We will represent our people with pride.

We will keep faith with the ideals that carried us from colonial rule to independence, from uncertainty to confidence, from anonymity to respect.

Because the greatest legacy we can give to those who follow is not the wealth of our generation, but the wisdom of our example. It is my hope that this Livingstone B. Johnson Chancery stand as a lasting reflection of that wisdom – a place where service is guided by conscience, where friendship is strengthened by trust, and where the enduring mission of The Bahamas continues.

And that all who enter here feel the presence of the man whose name it bears, a man who believed in this nation long before the world fully knew its worth.

Thank you.