Tag Archives: gender issues

The People’s National Movement (PNM) has appointed Arima MP Pennelope Beckles as its opposition leader. Beckles, 64, was endorsed by the PNM’s General Council today after producing writing support of six from the opposition’s 13 MPs: Symon de Nobriga, Marvin Gonzales, Colm Imbert, Kareem Marcelle, Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly, and Keith …

“[…] Our reality is that: women still make up only 23% of members of Parliament; the unemployment rate for women remains higher than for men, especially among young women aged 15-24 (CSO, 2022); and one in three women in Trinidad and Tobago has experienced intimate partner violence (UN Women Caribbean, 2023). “[…] The late Hazel Brown, one …

During the Bush 2.0 Administration, pious Christian Nationalist and Attorney General John Ashcroft demanded that two nude statues, called Spirit of Justice and Majesty of Justice, in the Great Hall be covered up with blue drapes, because he deemed the human nudity “indecent” and “distracting”. These were works of art …

Chapter 1: Tiny Weird Identifiable Lump (TWIL)… TWIL showed up in April—or rather I found TWIL in April. It is strange because self-exams were not a routine for me even though I knew the importance. I always had dense tissue and would get an annual ultrasound just to make sure …

“[…] The modern thong and beads era, while bold and unapologetic, often leans too far into the realm of impracticality. The disappearing thong, in particular, vanishes in part into crevices of unknown depth, leaving little to the imagination and often sacrificing comfort for shock value. “The bikini, on the other hand, has …

For whatever reason, the Express posted my column last week (The Art of Forgetting) on its Facebook page with an introductory heading comprising these 30 words of the 900 I’d written. “I come from a Muslim family, and when I entered puberty I rejected Islam for telling me that menstruation …

A friend of mine was worried about her increasing forgetfulness. It didn’t seem any more acute than that of most of the people I know (myself included) over 50. But it was so disturbing to her that she was contemplating getting tested for possible ADHD. She is 51, and now …

“[…] I did not always know about Deborah—based on my experience, she is rarely spoken about from the pulpits.  So I had been a Christian for many years before coming across her story a few years ago during a bible study session. “I feel I need to write about it.  …

“[…] Women are the ones most directly involved. They bear most of the physical and psychological trauma of parent/motherhood during pregnancy—unlike the male who has the option to opt out at any time. “[…] Does this tragedy not expose the lack of attention given to a most vulnerable group charged …

A long time ago, I had a discussion—maybe an argument—with a newspaper editor about what constituted “soft” news. He thought that issues affecting women were soft, and should be relegated to pages headed by labels that suggested they were for women only. Instinctively, I rejected that. It seemed to me …

In Afghanistan, under such bitterly cold conditions that more than a hundred have perished, the Taliban has kept its focus sharply on repressing women. The economy has shrunk, but the forces are hell bent on keeping women restricted from public activities. No to education; no to certain jobs, no to …

“[…] Access to justice is a human right and divorce is a basic exercise in access to justice. For many women, divorce is the only means by which to escape domestic violence or financial subjugation at the hands of a spouse. “[…] Adjournments or no shows of judges prolong the …