God forbid! If by any chance you feel any impulse to molest a child, just don’t try it – not now, not in Grandbay!
Under the sterling leadership of Acting Senior Community Nurse, Magdalene Alexander and District Medical Officer Dr. Phillip St. Jean, Southern Region 1 tackled a sensitive topic head-on. Their dynamic team laid essential groundwork with prior PTA and community meetings. Guided by their teachers, masses of students, dripping with sweat, marched and danced all the way from the clinic, up and down Lalle to Heritage Site. From Pichelin and Bellvue Chopin they came; from Tete Morne, Petitte Savane and Bagatelle to link up with Grandbay Primary and Pierre Charles Secondary. Holding banners high, their voices eagerly rose as one, in refrain to chants of:
“Be alert. Child abuse hurts!”
“Love me, don’t abuse me!”
“Don’t touch me there!”
“Break the silence. Tell someone!”
“I’ll tell my teacher/nurse, etc!”
The flashing lights of the Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force spearheaded the vibrant throng under the watchful eyes of the Fire & Rescue ambulance personnel. Tempered by a cool Atlantic breeze and bottles of ice-cold water, the blazing sun that glorious Thursday morning could not dampen the enthusiasm native in the heart of every child. This was by no means an exercise in futility. It would seem that each child had at least heard of, if not known personally, a fellow student who may have had to cope with such an issue. It is important to note that poverty does not equal neglect. Parental selfishness and depriving children of basic attention, does.
Their theatrical skits drew roars of laughter even as they packed a powerful punch – a deadly serious message. Student Shanie Alexander in particular, stood out as the loud and overbearing mother who wouldn’t give her daughter even a little break to relax.
International news of mass murder and mayhem such as the recent mall shootings in Nairobi, Kenya and widespread sex trafficking in places like Thailand may lead us to say, “Thank God we are not like other countries.” But the fact is we are coming up smartly as a nasty little violent nation as well. The spate of cutlass attacks and beheadings, armed robbery and our own home-grown porn industry should cause us to reflect, “Where are we heading to?!”
Children who are abused and neglected turn out to be abusers themselves. ‘Yo gatay!’ Before mischievous boys end up in prison, they show signs of antisocial behavior such as misuse of degrading video clips of women and cruelty to animals. Girls may act out in early flirtatious and hyper-sexualized ways in familiar response to the experiences they were subjected to. But there is always a way for redemption; always hope through intervention.
Implicit in Pastor Rawson Desbonnes’ invocation was the charge that believers need to do more than just praise and worship in the sanctuary if we are to change the trajectory of events in the public square. Prophetic voices should cry out louder against those in any positions of authority who impose themselves on subordinates or needy job-seekers. Prophetic voices should cry out louder against women who angrily dismiss their daughters, twice victimizing them for complaining that mommy’s boyfriend came into their home and interfered with them.
Local historian, ‘Kilimanjaro’ Harian Henry welcomed the dignitaries on behalf of the Village Council. The message was hammered home by Parl Rep Hon. Justina Charles. Corporal Fixton Henderson laid down the law, detailing the limits of consent. (‘She looked older’ is no excuse). The Health Promotion Unit offered full support as part of its emphasis on maternal and child health. Featured speaker, Guidance Counselor Patsy Letang, summed it all up superbly – even as the students’ attention span was tested by the sight of approaching snacks generously provided by business sponsors.
They did not just shrug their shoulders and lament, “That’s the way things are nowadays.” History is replete with glowing examples of good people taking a stand to ensure their civilization thrives within the bounds of common decency. Even those not there in person could feel the energy of the children and buy into the vision of the organizers. Make no mistake about it: the extraordinary mobilization accomplished by the Grandbay Health District was enough to send a chill down the spine of every abuser. These southern communities, especially the children, are now well sensitized. They have created an enabling environment for their talents to shine and leave a legacy of excellence that we can all be proud of.
Dr. Sam Christian is an American-trained surgeon who runs the newly-opened Urgent Care at 137 Bath Road in Roseau. The core mission is to decrease waiting time. Services offered include general practice, office surgery, acupuncture and home visits. Dr. Christian can be reached at 440-9133 / 613-8345 or [email protected]
GREAT WORK GRANDBAY HEALTH TEAM. I AM AN ADVOCATE AGAINST CHILD ABUSE AND I AM PROUD OF YOUR EFFORT.MINISTRY OF HEALTH NEED TO WORK NORE COOPERATIVELY WITH SOCIAL WELFARE DIVISION SO STAMP OUT CHILD ABUSE.
as a independent country we must face our demons in order for us to grow and become greater and more mature,correct me if i wrong but child molestation is rampant in our country and most of us turn a blind eye because it is too painful to deal with,a scarred child becomes a scarred adult and goverment as an obligation to protect,nurture and inspire our children to be great and the best way to do this is by making this crime repulsive in the eyes of the public and anyone found abusing a child must be serverly punished and shunned by society,if you are a victim of abuse you must first realize that you are innocent and have been taken advantage of by a monster,report them,expose them and find saftey from a trusted individual until the law becomes involved and help,guidence and justice can be found for you,,,,,YOU DID NOTHING WRONG lol
I so agree with your comment. Child abuse is a repulsive crime indeed, and affects the victims throughout their adult lives. Punishment for this crime should be public humiliation followed by Castration.
nice
Wondeful activity. Thanks to nurse Alexander, Dr. St. Jean, the studentsand all else who wee involved in theis demonstration (against child abuse)effort.
Emotional, physical and psychological abuse usually does alot of damage and leads to years of negative results. And thos negative results can take years to repair.
All those creeps out there abusing kids need to get help for themselves ( in somecases the abusers themselves were once victims of child abuse-therefore just carrying on the vicious cycle).
Lets all stand together to promote positivity in our society. Lets love our children and give them positive environments for their growth…they really ARE our future.
Great job guys. God bless you all.
Are you talking to a child molester? Are you talking to the victims that are threatened? Are you talking to those who are so scared that even if they want to tell are unable to?
Child Abuse is everywhere, and unless we, as parents, adults, and teachers are unable to identify the symptoms and question the victims we will be unable to STOP THE CYCLE.