THERE WAS A TIME when you’d hear a term confidently bandied about: “You’re in Barbados – who is going to trouble you?”
Unfortunately, those times are long past. What has replaced them is what is becoming for many a new normal, where a surge in crime has prompted extra vigilance on the part of many people, especially single women.
The troubling fact is that these incidents aren’t happening in isolation or so infrequently that one can say it’s a fluke. Especially when a woman and her daughters sitting at home were pounced upon by masked gunmen – a jarring incident which brought to stark reality that times really have changed.
Many women, especially single women who live alone, have started to readjust their lifestyles in an effort to keep themselves and their children, in some cases, safe.
One woman who was terrorized by vandals in her St Michael home knows the heart-wrenching feeling of fear that comes from feeling violated.
“There was an abandoned house next to my home and the men would congregate there,” Michelle said.
“I remember one day I was showering and felt like someone was watching me. When I turned around,
[I saw] he had climbed up on the fence and was watching me. I was so terrified I didn’t stay in that house for three months. I stayed with my neighbour.”
Kathleen, a single mother who hails from Jamaica, says she has always had a heightened sense of security.
“I’ve always been safety-conscious, coming from Jamaica,” she adds.
“I lock my apartment door whenever I come home. I don’t have burglar bars so I try to keep my windows closed or if I open them, it is just barely, because I don’t have a male presence in the house.”
Kathleen says that her vigilance also extends to her habits on the street.
“I would go running sometimes at the gymnasium, and one night this man told me to be careful about wearing jewellery or carrying a cellphone because someone may try to rob you, so I don’t wear jewellery and I keep my phone in the car now,” Kathleen said. “Times are hard and people are getting desperate.”
Even though women may be single and live alone, there are steps they can take to secure themselves and their environment, according to Station Sargeant O’Neal Small, Crime Prevention Officer.
– Make sure the environment around your home is conducive to good security. Don’t think that an insect screen can keep a potential burglar out.
– If there are trees around your home that can give someone access or entry, they should be cut back or cut down.
– People living alone need to pay attention to how they do things routinely. If they’re going to be in one room in the house, make sure the other access areas to their home are secure.
– Make sure you don’t leave instruments around like garden tools, and obstacles that can elevate people to access areas in your home should be put away.
– Make sure you have appropriate lighting to illuminate the environment around the home.
Trust your instinct. If approaching your home at night, you need to pay attention to any unusual or suspicious activity in the area.
When your instincts tell you that something isn’t right as you approach, turn away – get assistance from someone in the neighbourhood you can trust, or call or go to the police.
