A lot of holidays during my younger years were spent in mining communities. A good portion of my family were involved in mining and for a while I saw it as being this wondrous job. I didn’t understand why it was that mining communities often got such a bad rap. From the eyes of idealism, they were seen as places of exciting adventures. Adults however, viewed them as places filled with violence and debauchery, no place for the good and certainly no place for children. With passing time I was able to recognize that the negative reviews mining communities received were not without justification.
There is almost a heightened patriarchal violence that can be found in mining communities. Given close community ties and corrupt/absent police presence, abuse against women and girls are normalized and accepted as the standard. There is very little concern and accountability for those that experience sexual and physical violence. Part of this also has to do with limited economic and developmental opportunities that exist within these communities.
