I am standing in solidarity tonight with Trinidadian blogger activist Simone Leid, author of the blog "Women Speak, Women Tell Their Stories of Discrimination." She and her readers are outraged and raising hell about a Trinidad television station's October 25th airing of the rape of a thirteen year old girl. "In a country where the cries of a child being raped can be aired at prime time... is it any wonder that we are a country whose rates of murder of women by domestic partners and rape are among the highest in the world?" said Leid on her blog today. "I cannot sit idly by and merely shake my head at this abomination. The rape of a child aired on a television show notorious for sensationalizing, and packaging criminal activity and the trauma of victims as entertainment signals that we have reached an all new level of barbarism," Leid is calling for TV6 Trinidad to take the offending show "Crime Watch" off the air and asking her readers to join her by lodging complaints with the Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago, providing a link by which to do so on her blog. "We demand higher standards of decency, empathy and justice for women and girls," Leid said. "We each have a voice. Let us use it."
I grieve for the child who survived a gang rape only to be violated again by a grossly irresponsible and exploitative television show. All kinds of people need to be fired at TV6 Trinidad for their negligence in the airing of this violent crime. I hope Leid keeps speaking out about the film that is outraging all who hear of it. We women especially need to be outraged about the insidious rape culture that pervades our Caribbean reality and identity, we need to speak out in protest for those victims who have lost their voices, the way Leid is speaking for this rape victim, we need to stand together with one another when human rights crimes like this one are committed against women and girls. I'll be joining Leid and filing a complaint. Maybe a petition is in order demanding a full investigation into how the show obtained film footage of the crime and demanding too that someone be held accountable for it. I would sign such a petition.
3 comments:
I probably may have missed Simone Leid's/Womenspeak's indignant response to Kamla allowing Reshmi and Sandra to make fools/liars of themselves. However,I did read of Simone Leid's desperate attempt to prostitute her organization for cheap publicity by attacking Ian Aleyne's popular Crime Watch programme.Notwithstanding Alleyne's snowballing stupid arrogance , his attempts to fight crime are fresh,vibrant and efficacious.His visual shock therapy of bringing it up in our faces, even incensing some like Womenspeak ,is the avenue for the citizens to have some repository for their confidence that action will be taken. SimoneLeid/Womenspeak have adopted a foolish response to that video meant to galvanize us into action against these abominable crimes against our womenfolk.Please Simone Leid, stop playing to the gallery. These are desperate times requiring desperate measures.And a word for Child Rights Advocate,Hazel Thompson-Ahye...attorneys don't need to talk all the time.If you didn't see the video, your professional status is not compromised if you shut up.
mr murray, you must be on crack. hard to believe you have the nerve to actually sign your name to these idiotic remarks. the good thing is, my readers now have a much clearer idea of what we are up against in the struggle to end violence against women and girls. that you would try to discredit ms leid is proof that her human rights campaign is working and creeps like you are on the run. (and did you really csll us "womenfolk?" what kind of weird eighteenth century term is that?)i'm proud that my little blog has the power to flush out and expose men like you so that we decent people can point at you and laugh. hahahahahaha!
Mr Murray, can I ask as a man what do you do to ensure that your "womenfolk" as you term it are safe, other than probably burglar proofing? Do you volunteer your time to ensure that young men know how to treat a young woman? Do you spend time with persons-young women who are not related to you to show them that not all men act like some portrayed in the numerous music videos we see on a daily basis? If your answer to any of these questions are no, then I suggest you shut up and GO AND DO IT!
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