Whenever cases of sexual and physical abuse hit the media, which is often, I try to stay away from public discussions of it. There is a heaviness that comes with being aware of all the ways that our society continues to fail women while rushing to coddle and justify the actions of their abusers. There are many elements to this but the majority of it has to do with the disregard for bodily autonomy and consent that is rife within Guyana.
To be a woman in Guyana is a weary affair. You are forced to experience not only the abuse of family, partners and strangers often from young ages, but also forced to deal with judicial and political patriarchal practices that continues to make the country unsafe. When one adds the dynamics of race, class and nationality to sexism within Guyana, the picture becomes even grimmer.
