We can’t swallow an ant although we’ve already swallowed a mule

Dear Editor,

The following comment appeared on Demerara Waves below a picture of pickets protesting the charging a young man for allegedly showing the middle finger to a presidential convoy.

“Those women needs to be monitored by the social services if this is the way they are training their kids, what example are they showing as mothers and sisters to other kids, no wonder most domestic abuse and other crimes are committed by their constituents, that is more reason they are at the bottom of the social ladder even in the land of opportunities, one day their kids will give them both middle fingers.” (My italics)

That gesture, a very offensive one, was there since I was a child in the 1930s.

The person who wrote the comment quoted above is mistaken. Boys of all races and religions learn it as children. Girls turn away from it.

When we come to domestic abuse I do not know that any one community (“constituents”) by any name can claim less domestic abuse than another.  To claim that is sheer pretence and self-flattery.  We had better not go there. It will disgrace all of us, regardless of race (“constituents”).

To me this is one of the issues:  In that very State House, a woman who thought she had married a President, had been abused for a prolonged period. Although the law had been broken, no charge was laid. No one, DPP, or anyone lifted a finger. In effect the prosecutors laughed at that woman citizen.

I claim a special right to watch the President and comment on his actions and lack of action, as I had said in writing, very publicly, when he was proposed, “Give the young man a chance.” I had to remark that all he did was to take chances!

The charging of Mr Kevin Simon is an act of hypocrisy and play-acting. Has that well-known Minister ever been charged for drawing, not a finger, but a gun on a teenager at a nightspot?

So there it is. We pretend we can’t swallow a fine ant, although we had swallowed a mule

Yours faithfully,
Eusi Kwayana