Dear Editor,
Child Protection Week, under the theme ‘Partnering with Families and Communities for the Positive Outcome for Children’, has just concluded, but not one of us ‒ communities, government agencies, organizations or the police ‒ is doing enough to protect children from abuse. The tragedy of 13- year-old Leonard Archibald is the latest and one of the worst examples of this collective failure.
Note that we are not saying that nothing is being done, but affirming that all that has been done is still not enough. About a week ago at a vigil organized by Child link, a Childcare and Protection Agency Officer, Ms October in her remarks said that child abuse should be everybody’s business, and that is what we in Red Thread & Grassroots Women Across Race (GWAR) have been saying for many moons . The trouble is, everyone says it but few put the words into action.
It is often said that it takes one woman to bear a child but the whole community to raise it. Where has all the old protection for children gone? Where is the compassion and love that would prevent us from turning a blind eye, when it suits us, letting paedophiles destroy our children?
All of us, each individual, each community, each institution and each organization – all of us ‒ have to start thinking about each child as though she/he is our own and go the extra mile to ensure the protection of our children.
Yours faithfully,
Wintress White
Joy Marcus
Bibi Halima Khan
Susan Collymore
Vanessa Ross
Joycelyn Bacchus
Red Thread
