Who Cares About the Murdered Child?

Womanhood in The Bahamas is a vanquished nation. I am convinced that women writers are obligated to focus vision and voice upon the enactment of the inevitable coup. It is our sacred obligation to instigate the rebellion by the ritual and relentless acts of Story and Poem. And in the making of angry blogs when necessary. Today is one that warrants an angry blog.

I’m writing this blog when really I want to be outside the Supreme Court with a picket sign and a bull horn calling for the resignation of the judge who let the accused child killer free. It is a terrible outrage. And the public silence regarding this corruption of justice is disgraceful. Nassau is a city already crime-ridden, we the people are already terrorized on a daily basis. Our children are already at risk. Now the judiciary is letting child predators loose among us and there are no voices in protest from the religious leaders, none from the human rights organizations, none from the citizenry, and none from the press. Who cares about the innocent nine year old whose life was taken in such a brutal way? Who cares about his grieving mother? Where are the community leaders who will speak for them, and for all of us who are shocked by this latest madness from the Bahamian Bench.

I wish to state right now for the public record, on behalf of the Feminist women of Nassau, that we stand in compassion and solidarity with the murdered child and his family and demand the immediate resignation of Justice Stephen Isaacs.

Apparently the accused killer's defence was that a confession was beaten out of him by police. I know for a fact that this is a common claim by many who are detained by Bahamian police. I know that police brutality is a fact of life in the Bahamas. I know that most of the time magistrates and justices are hardly ever swayed by these claims. That Justice Isaacs would be swayed by such a plea at this particular time, when the crime involves the killing of an innocent child in such a terrible way, is disturbing. It puts his integrty and his fitness for the job of Justice of the Bahamas Supreme Court in serious question.

Let there be an independent and extensive investigation into brutality on the police force. But, let there also be justice for little Devaughn Knowles and for all Bahamian children at risk. How many accused child predators are ever charged in the courts? How many are convicted? I mean to find out, but at this moment I am sure the numbers are dismally low. Apparently Justice Isaacs is not aware of this or does not care.

Who cares about the murdered child? I believe my readers care. I ask you all to join me in voicing your protest against this ruling. Please write and speak out with me, lets put our powerful voices together and cry shame on Justice Isaacs for his ruling, and on the police force too for allowing years of brutality in their ranks to escalate to this point where the accused goes free and a child's murder goes unsolved.

SPEAK OUT.

I wait to hear from you.