Dear Editor,

I would like to commend Ms Stella Ramsaroop on her stand for equality between men and women. She has become a lighthouse for so many women and I in particular enjoy reading her articles and gleaning from her words of wisdom. I must also congratulate her on her S4 Foundation (Stella’s Sisterhood of Support and Service Foundation) which enlightens and highlights the plight of many women in Guyana and around the world.

Being an amateur, I for one, do digest her writings and I am sharing her information with my family and friends. Ms Ramsaroop’s message is one of hope, and she must be admired for her stand against domestic violence and the suppression of women, particularly in Guyana. The high incidence of domestic violence in our country with only recently a woman from Craig being brutally murdered can only add to the misery that women face – either with their spouses or others. Ms Ramsaroop is very firm in her stand, and she does not deviate from her given task to ensure that women are educated and informed about changing their lifestyles and to push them to become more independent persons in society.

This columnist and activist will certainly not be the first or the last but I wish to say that she often reminds me of one of my favourite authors, Jane Austen, who wrote the beautiful novel Pride and Prejudice where her protagonist Elizabeth fights against the patriarchal system that wanted to suppress women during the early 19th century in England. Elizabeth was strong willed and did not accept what society determined for her; rather she crafted her own path and has become one of the most beloved characters in Jane Austen’s timeless collections.

Austen also wanted to advocate that women be independent and free to make their own choices; this is what I believe is the message that Ms Ramsaroop wants for her readers, specifically women.

So I would like to say thank you Ms Ramsaroop and ask her to keep writing, because women are reading and they are listening. She is a strong woman and I admire her hard work. May God continue to bless her and keep her as she spreads her message of hope and peace for a better society and ultimately a better world.

Yours faithfully,
Lydia Beresford