A Woman On A Mission By Cherryll LaFond

Dominica, the Caribbean island which boasts itself as the nature island of the
Caribbean.  It is best known for its natural beauty, pristine splendor;
and mineral springs formed from its volcanic properties.   It is an
island, which has produced the world’s youngest prime minister, some of
the longest living centenarians, and the very first female prime
minister to govern a Caribbean Nation. But behind all this pristine
beauty, the social and political attributes, is a very dark side of
societal ills of poverty, child neglect, child and sexual abuse of
every form, faced by a child in every other household, particularly the
less fortunate children in the island’s Urban Ghettos.

An unnoticed epidemic for decades, which has remain one the island’s deep dark secrets, but has continued to afflict the Dominican Society.

In recent years, laws such as the Sexual Offenses ACT 1 of 1998, have been implemented to address some of these issues.

However, due to a lack of proper governmental structure, trained personnel, a non-bureaucratic, or a non-corrupt political system.

This problem and many other inhumane situations continue to plague the society, particularly those who do not have a voice or an effective advocate who will let their plights be heard.

The stories told by some of its victims are heart-breaking, the perpetrators isn’t just the average person (a stranger), they are pastors, politicians, musical artists, teachers, a father, lawyers, law enforcers, child nurse practitioners, bank directors, doctors, family members, the neighbour, or a family friend in most cases these offenders are nearly three times the age of the victims.

The Dominican society has turned its back on these victims, and has desensitized itself from these ills; the treatment towards those who have succumbed to childhood sexual abuse is a very cruel one.

Victims are ridiculed for their unfortunate circumstances; the government does not seem to care as to what is going on and has made no major efforts to address these problems, few are charged for such crimes, but in most cases, they receive a very light penalty, which may be a small fine and in very rare situations, may receive a short jail time, but no major penalties are given to sex offenders.

Based on who the offender is, and the position that they may hold within the Dominican Society, the charge or changes brought against them, quietly vanishes.     In some cases (most being the norm), the offender pays off the parent or parents of the victim, the matter is no longer considered a problem.

As a result, some victims who have been scared by these ills are walking emotional time bombs; there are no therapeutic facilities or other such mediums for healing.

One individual, who has taken up a crusade in combating some of these problems, particularly in the city’s Urban Ghettos is Gloria Walsh.

Gloria Walsh is on a mission, and her mission is a one-woman fight, to help the children in Dominica’s Urban Ghettos, particularly in the Silver Lake community in attaining a better life, one out of what they currently live in.   Her concerns are very genuine; she is not deterred by any of the bureaucratic setbacks she faces in her quest.

“It is sad, and those in high places are the very ones who are condoning the nonsense that is happening to these children.”   Gloria is no stranger to this field, a community activist for the past eighteen years, she has been involved in the community development of the Bath Estate Community, where she has lived.

She also worked with Operation Youth Quake, a small organization funded by government to help in the development of young persons on the island.        A few years ago, she started a voluntary organization for youths, The Love One, Teach One Foundation Inc. (www.loveoneteachone.com), to provide a supportive program for underprivileged children and troubled youth in the Roseau areas.

It also provides participants help with their homework; provide additional instructions to them in different subject areas such as Reading, Mathematics, Spelling, English and Writing.   As part of the Reading Program, participants have the opportunity to enroll at the public Library, borrow books, and research homework, as well as educational field trips and other social events of interest.

It is an agency, whose sole survival and success is based on the generosity of friends, family and other well-wishers.

“Our society have become laid back, materials things are our comfort, once we have our comfort, it doesn’t matter to us anymore.”

She gets clothing, food and other donations from a few concerned friends based in the US, others have promised to help, but these promises have never been fulfilled, without these types of assistance, her mission would have been a wasted effort.

She operates on a nonexistent budget and has sort the assistance of government for funding or any type of available aid, but these efforts have been useless.    Her proposals to the government have never been read either can they be found.

“The Welfare Division’s hands are tied, not many workers to deal with what is happening right now, our Government don’t care, and I will say it.  Don’t you think they are not getting reports?  So it doesn’t matter to them.”

It is 5 am, Tuesday morning; Gloria is up, and is preparing to embark on her day’s journey.   It is the start of a typical day.

A single mother of four, she prepares her younger kids for school, so that she can be on her way to the various communities and schools she visits daily.     She prepares meals at home, for some 30 kids she provides too lunch two days a week.

By 9 am, she has already covered a 10-20 mile walk, where she visits the first school, for a PTA (Parent Teachers Association) executive meeting at the Newtown Primary School, where she serves as executive secretary to the PTA, she also serves on the a sub-committee for parenting as well.

Along her way she may be stopped by someone in the community who may need her help with some matter or another.

Recently, she coordinated an aid drive for a family who had lost their home to a fire.      She is determined to cover as much as possible in one day.     In one day, she will visit the entire Silver Lake Community.

The Silver Lake Community is less than a 30-minute drive from the capital city of Roseau.     It’s a community, which is plagued, with poverty, social ills such as unemployment, school dropout, teen pregnancy, gambling, drugs, neglect, child abuse and many other issues.

There are families in that community who hardly have a daily meal, and live from mouth to mouth or by the mercy of god for survival.        One of the most disturbing things about this community, are the things the children who live there are exposed too, which range from drug trafficking, and sex exploitation of many forms.

As related by a resident who asked that their identity be kept anonymous,  “some of the children are sexually abused by those bourgeois, and when they think you are going to the police, they will offer money to keep quiet.   What money?   Five hundred dollars, that kind of little money”

By 10 am, Gloria whisks her way through the small narrow paths between the small-galvanized shacks, in the Silver Lake Community, where she meets with some of the parents.

She is overwhelmed by the problems related to her.   Problems ranging from child support, child abuse, neglect, and in some cases a sexual assault, or abuse.

“It’s just too much in this little country of ours, I will say a lot of people are so caught up in the material world they don’t care about their children, society has turned a blind eye towards a lot of issues concerning our kids.”     Most of these parents are young mothers, some of whom, barely made it through a basic education.  She is their only form of hope.

They look at her as the only person who can create a voice for letting their plights be heard.     “It is for real, we are sitting on a time bomb of sexual abuse, physically, and verbally, all in all, the ills of our children are rampant in Dominica.”

It is also one of the areas, where the current Labour Party Government led by Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, has its most loyal supporters; some literarily worship their young prime minister as they say.      He is adored by many of the residents there, so for that moment in time, their burdens are relieved, forgetting the impoverished conditions, which surrounds them.

Although the government has been offering free homes and other housing amenities, with aid from the Venezuelan Government, under what it dubbed  “The Housing Revolution”, the revolution has not yet reached the Silver Lake Community, so this vicious cycle of poverty continues.

Some wait patiently for the upcoming general elections, which is roughly one-year away.    It is the time when all the contesting politicians will visit these areas as part of their campaign strategy, every politician will promise a better life, a life out of the one they currently live in.

However, that too will disappear once the elections are over, and nothing would have changed.  As noon approaches, Gloria shuffles her way out, through narrow walkways between, the cramped up shacks to the main road and heads home.   To be home in time when the students she feeds lunch to twice a week reaches her doorsteps.

It is a hectic task but she is committed to her cause and forgets all the other setbacks she faces.    “I am doing my fair share, and I am still doing for the less fortunate kids of society, I ensure that they going on the right track and I have spoken about the issues with CCF (Christian Children Fund), Ministry of Education, Welfare Department, but I will not stop.”

There is roughly an hour and a half break before she heads back to the Roseau Girls School, a small school in the capital city where she has secured a classroom for after school lessons with the kids from the Silver Lake Community. During that time, she teaches life skills such as Personal Hygiene, Cooking, and Arts and Crafts.

She tries hard to be the best motivator she can be to the kids in the program, by organizing community clean-up projects, with the kids there, and work with them on the various tasks, such as cleaning the public water supply and other communal facilities.

Gloria now looks forward to relocating the program to the Bath Estate Community Centre, which is within a closer proximity to the Silver Lake Area; it is also a bigger building, so more kids will have the opportunity of becoming part of the program.

She hopes that this will lead to the expansion of the lunch program from two days a week at her home to three days a week, at the Community Centre.    Gloria also hopes that if this venture becomes a reality, it will offer a better sense of hope for the other kids in the Silver Lake Community.    The situation may get worst.

However, Gloria will continue on her personal crusade to help ease the conditions there for the many children she helps.    Her struggle will continue, but at the end, she is determined to bring about change.