The damage to many children begins when they are very young. Whether in the form of physical, verbal, psychological or sexual abuse, many Guyanese children are affected by the inadequacies of the adults who are supposed to protect them.
When we quiet ourselves and consider who or what many of us are, it is not very difficult to figure out why many of our social issues exist. Yet, repeatedly, we are shocked by the results of the dysfunction that continues to plague our society. We change nothing, or our efforts to change are inadequate, or often we just verbalise our displeasure, with little or no action to follow up. As a result, those who are opposed to positive change will always perhaps have the greatest impact in stagnating us.
The incident that has placed the Mae’s Schools in the spotlight has once again exposed the thoughtlessness as it regards children in our society. A child was humiliated for simply dressing in traditional Indigenous garb. And, of course, the incident has aroused a discourse about intolerance, ignorance and disrespect. It has also driven members of the Indigenous community and supporters to protest.
