Dear Christine,
Who is responsible for teaching men in this country that they need to respect women?
I am serious about what I am asking.
I know people say that parents are to blame for the lack of respect young people have; or they blame the schools and the churches. But I feel the problem rests squarely on the shoulders of the men of this country.
Christine, do you realize that a woman cannot walk the roads in peace because men feel they have a right to accost her, and say what they would like to do with her.
The thing is that the men who do this are from all walks of life and educational levels; they are not just riff raffs.
I feel that NISE should get their pig mascot that goes around schools to go places where a lot of men gather and talk to them about how distasteful their behaviour is.
What do you think?
– Louise
Dear Louise,
I agree with you 100 per cent on the behaviour of men towards women – it really stinks!
The NISE people should indeed try to structure a programme in conjunction with the Men’s Educational Support Association to address this issue that involves men in every age group, and social and financial bracket.
It saddens me when I hear young women being told by a man what looks good on them, and then, in the rawest terms, what he would like to do with them.
It is as if these men have no mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts and other female relatives; but more important than that, they seem to have no sense of decency.
What I realize though is that this attitude seems to be a cultural thing in the Caribbean as I have encountered similar behaviour from the Bahamas in the north right down to Suriname on the South American mainland.
Men really need to stop behaving in this insulting manner to women.
Also, some mechanism should be in place where women could report this harassment with the assurance that their complaints would be acted on. The time has long past for this foolishness to stop.
– Christine
