Kingston, March 9, 2017 - There’s no denying the significant challenges young women face in Jamaica and around the world. Despite their hard work, dedication to excellence and stellar contributions to the growth of this country they still find it difficult to achieve their dreams or even live fulfilling lives without fear. The recent flare up in gender based violence offences being committed against women and girls is simply a symptom of this larger, human rights issue, an issue that requires BOLD CHANGE. Students at Meadowbrook High School and Ardenne High School in Kingston, Jamaica who participated in The European Union and its Member States' School Tour to commemorate International Women’s Day on Thursday, March 9, 2017 - benefitted from educational sessions focused on gender issues, led by the University of the West Indies’ Institute for Gender and Development Studies team. The information they shared with these bright young students prepared them to contribute to the global movement to empower young people to #BEBOLDFORCHANGE and to #STAMPITOUT, 'it' being gender based violence.

​Both Meadowbrook and Ardenne High schools are known to produce outstanding graduates, and their intelligent, articulate students fully engaged in the sessions which were presented by Professor Verene Shepherd, Dr. Adwoa Onuora, Mrs. Suzanne Charles-Watson and Ms. Judith Wedderburn. These sessions focused on defining key terms in speaking about gender, highlighting the connection between gender and socialization, recognizing gender based violence and using academic curricula as a tool for stamping it out. Some key terms explained by Dr. Onuora and Mrs. Suzanne Charles-Watson using the fun medium of a game of musical chairs, included gender, sex and gender based violence. Building on these definitions Ms. Judith Wedderburn engaged the students in conversations about their own socialization process and how negative and positive, attitudes, cultural norms and values regarding gender were consciously and unconsciously passed on to them. Immediately grasping this abstract concept, a student of Ardenne High commented that most people are interested in knowing the sex of a baby because “this can determine his or her entire life” - to resounding applause around the room. Other students of both schools highlighted incidents in their own lives where they felt their gender put them at a disadvantage or was the main reason for some form of discrimination and shared their opinions on stereotypical gender norms for men such as being emotionally unavailable and promiscuous, and women being sensitive, peaceful and submissive.
 
Naturally the sessions progressed from gender socialization to gender based violence. Students were walked through modern scenarios of sexual grooming where a person of power attempts to gain the trust of another in order to take advantage of that relationship to abuse them. These scenarios included being asked for nude pictures on social media or being tempted with material things like fancy cellular phones or even delicious foods. A key part of this discussion that Mrs. Charles-Watson zoomed in on was the issue of power. She carefully explained the imbalance of power in such situations that causes young people to sometimes fall for these tricks and while reassuring the students that their natural innocence should never be used as excuse for them being abused, she explained the warning signs and red flags of sexual grooming and gender based violence to look out for. This session elicited some very important questions from students of Meadowbrook High who asked about other situations of power imbalances  - such as a parent forcing a child who has been sexually abused to recant a statement they previously gave condemning the perpetrator of the crime because he or she is the parent’s spouse or partner. Students also asked about situations where a person who should be helping and protecting them, is sexually abusing them. These questions were tackled both by Mrs. Charles-Watson who highlighted agencies such as CISOCA that deal with such situations, and the Master of Ceremonies for the school tour Lasco Top Cop 2015 - Detective Sergeant Ava Lindo who spoke to the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s protocol for dealing with such situations.
 
In one of the most emotional moments of the entire school tour, Ms. Lindo valiantly chose to share her story of surviving sexual abuse at age 15 and keeping it to herself for more than a decade. A living, breathing example of the importance of recognizing, protecting and uplifting women, Sergeant Lindo used her story to empower the students at Ardenne and Meadowbrook to always speak up about sexual abuse and to respect themselves and others.
 
Professor Verene Shepherd’s presentation highlighted the importance of recognizing the contributions of women to history, lest we allow young people to believe only men have shaped the world, and thereby discourage girls from becoming change makers.
 
In their vote of thanks speeches, student representatives of both schools expressed gratitude for the information disseminated and spoke about feeling empowered to stamp out gender based violence. They also thanked the European Union Delegation and its Member States resident in Jamaica for recognizing the importance of engaging young people in meaningful dialogue about gender and other similar issues to equip them with the information they need to not only protect themselves but to also support each other regardless of gender.
 
Those sentiments echoed the Head of the European Union delegation in Jamaica - Malgorzata Wasilewska who shared insights into the mission of the EU to support democracy, human rights and peace around the world and spoke about the long and fruitful relationship Jamaica has had with the EU. It’s a relationship spanning more than 40 years and including more than a billion US dollars in grants to the island.  Taking a few hours out of their extremely busy schedules all ambassadors to Jamaica from EU member states joined Ms. Wasilewska in imparting powerful messages about honoring the humanity of every person. The delegation included Chargée d’Affaires of the Embassy of Spain in Jamaica - Carmen Rives Ruiz-Tapiador, British High Commissioner to Jamaica - David Fitton, the Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of Germany in Jamaica - Michael Dumke, French Ambassador to Jamaica - Jean Michel Despax and Belgian Ambassador to Jamaica - Guy Sevrin, who also spoke words of encouragement to the students of Meadowbrook and Ardenne. The World Bank was represented by their Country Manager for Jamaica - Galina Sotirova and the United Nations was represented by Coordinator of the UN Secretary General High-Level panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment - Pat Francis.
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Other notable speakers included a representative of the Ministry of Education - Susan Nelson-Bloomfield, Honorary Consul General of Thailand and CEO of Island Grill - Thalia Lyn who shared her experiences as a girl who was encouraged to succeed and as such grew into a woman who owns a massive chain of restaurants and Talk Up Yout Founder and Co-Executive Producer Emprezz Golding who in her own extraordinary style used her voice to encourage the youth to talk up!
 
Poet and entrepreneur Randy McLaren of Bresheh, used his creative dub poetry to entertain and inspire young people to continue to be “Progessive Youths”, eliciting roaring applause from everyone present. Even the German Chargé d'Affaires to Jamaica Michael Dumke, and British High Commissioner to Jamaica David Fitton both admitted that although they didn’t understand much of Randy’s Jamaican patois, the message clearly resonated with those who do understand the language, especially the students. Chargée d’Affaires of the Embassy of Spain,  Carmen Rives Ruiz-Tapiador, in her closing remarks, highlighted that the initiative was intended to explain what the European Union is and its concern for gender equality, which is a challenge in Jamaica and worldwide, thus the importance of partnership.   
 
Youth is a tumultuous period in every person’s life, where their personality is shaped by forces they are often not even fully cognizant of. This makes it one of the most critical periods in life and as such the need for good information that empowers young people to make good decisions cannot be overemphasized. This school tour has added to the European Union and its Member States' legacy of supporting Jamaican people and investing in the future of this country, an investment that can only lead to the improvement of this country and the world. Armed with information the students of Meadowbrook and Ardenne High Schools will continue to let their lights shine, and to seek the best.
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