Zahra Gordon andBobie-Lee Dixon
The formation of the Single Fathers Association of T&T (SFATT) last August may have been read as an affront to feminism. The group was formed to advocate for the rights of children who were "forcibly estranged from their fathers" according to its Web site.
SFATT president Rhondell Feeles is adamant that the court system favours women in custody, maintenance and other family court matters–results of years of activism by women's rights groups.
While speaking to the T&T Guardian in a telephone interview yesterday, Feeles' first response was a question: "Have you ever heard of International Men's Day?"
It was his way of pointing out that the worldwide focus on women's rights was overshadowing any good that men do.
Feeles believes that the fight for women's rights is coming full circle. According to him, in the past women were thought to be incapable of working outside of the household; now, the tables have turned and men are thought to be incapable of working within the household.
In fact, there is an International Men's Day (IMD). However, IMD deals with different issues than does today's International Women's Day.
According to the IMD Web site, the day promotes "a unified celebration of manhood and the positive contribution men make to society." The founder is Trinidadian Dr Jerome Teelucksingh.
The Web site is sponsored by an Australian organisation, Dad4Kids Father Foundation, which says its mission is "to improve the well-being of children by increasing the proportion of children growing up with involved, responsible, committed and loving fathers."
On the other hand, International Women's Day (IWD) was born out of a US women's movement for better wages, working hours and voting rights.
Still, Feeles believe the fight for justice has gone too far. "This women's day is for achieving equal rights for women to work and for them to have control legally over their children. In an attempt to equalise, things were overshot and women fighting for equality started going overboard. This is just my personal analysis," he said.
To Feeles, this is most evident in the justice system. "If you go to the police stations or hospitals with an injured child they tell you that the mother has to go in with the child even if the parents are together.
"There are men in the group that have been physically abused by their wives but when they go to make a report in the police station they don't take them on. But you know, if a man beats a woman the police will reach on his doorstep."
He added that there is no system in place to verify claims mothers make for child maintenance, in some cases causing fathers to pay sometimes exorbitant amounts.
Feeles' own experience with the court system saw his visitation rights with his son being cut from 15 days a month to four days a month.
"I believe it (feminism) contributes to society but if there is no fairness and justice in these courts then things will spiral out of control.
"At the end of the day women and men working together is very important. The worst feeling someone could feel is oppression so being fair is important," he said.
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In this excerpt from the article This is why I'm feminist, Barbadian Dr Tonya Hayes makes a case for the necessity of feminism. Hayes is the co-ordinator of CODE Red for gender justice. She was also an organiser of the 2012 Catch A Fyah Feminist Grounding conference for regional feminists. This article was published online in Outlish magazine.
"Three weeks ago in Guyana, a 12-year-old girl, pregnant by her stepfather, gave birth by caesarean section. The newspapers reported that after the surgery she was resting comfortably. I'm not sure what they meant by that. But I know that news made me uncomfortable.
"What about her right to a life free of violence?
"Why did this girl's community fail to protect her from sexual abuse? Why, when they found out about it, did they remain silent? Was the girl advised of all her options, including her right to an abortion (which is legal in Guyana)? Will her future needs for sexuality education, contraception and health care be met? What about her right to a life free of violence?
"This is why I'm feminist. Because I know the answers to those questions, and I don't like them.
"This is why I'm feminist. Because any form of inequality or discrimination needs to be redressed. Because gender inequality cuts across other forms of oppression.
"Yes, I've heard how strong Caribbean women are, how we're outnumbering and outperforming men at university, and that many young women are afraid to identify with feminism because they fear it means they won't get a man. And I'm still feminist."
Equality still a long way off
In a telephone interview, Dr Gabrielle Hosein, T&T Guardian columnist and lecturer at the Institute for Gender and Development Studies at UWI St Augustine, said historically the feminist struggle in the Caribbean has fought for an equality that has still not been won.
She said in most occupations, women in the Caribbean and T&T continue to earn half of what men do.
Pointing out the issue of violence against women, Hosein said there is a disproportionate experience of sexual violence by women in society.
"The level of violence meted out against women, be it sexual, physical or otherwise, by their intimate partners or men in general continues to be a growing problem," she said.
She added the ability for women to safeguard themselves, protect their bodies and their rights remains a challenge because of the level of inequality that exists.
On another note, Hosein said while there has been great progress in terms of men sharing the labour of caring in the home, women still remain with the greater responsibility.
"This places women and their children in situations of greater poverty–having to depend on men or the State to take care of them. It can also open them up to the risk of abuse by those who they become dependent upon."
She said women who are the main caretakers of their children are also at a greater disadvantage in regard to following their dreams.
"To be the main caretaker means many sacrifices.
"Women are often forced to sacrifice their careers or put their dreams on hold as their children now become their main priority."
Speaking of the many young women whose bodies and sexuality are used to advertise alcohol, Hosein said it breeds a culture that speaks to the limited sense of self that has been established in young women.
"The question of women's visibility and value in the public eye remains a stereotype."
She added women in politics in T&T remain grossly under-represented in the Cabinet and Parliament as well.
"These are the issues that feminists need to keep at the fore. Even when recognising that women have made gain and men have taken on a some role in transforming gender inequality and justice, there is still a lot more to be done where women's rights and the issue of equality are concerned."
Women and feminism
The dictionary describes feminism as the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social and economic equality to men.
But most anti-feminists believe that feminists are just a group of man-hating women.
Over the years women have made significant strides–evolving from home makers to CEOs, entrepreneurs, educators, prime ministers and even presidents.
However, even though these major breakthroughs continue, there remain unresolved issues surrounding gender inequality.
Today, as the world observes UN International Women's Day, feminist and human interest groups across the globe have organised events to highlight, honour and celebrate the achievements of women.
This year the annual day of recognition is titled the Gender Agenda: Gaining Momentum.
Why do we need an IWD?
Diana Mahabir-Wyatt who heads the Coalition Against Domestic Violence wasn't too keen on discussing what "more" needs to be done by feminist groups to stop gender inequality. She asked: "Why do we need to have an International Women's Day?"
Why, she asked, in 2013 does there have to be legislation against female circumcision or against slavery of women or even the need to protect women's rights?
"The fact is, women still do not have rights in 2013. The UN promotes certain international observances for that reason, because they know that for certain groups in society equality does not exist," said Mahabir-Wyatt.
She said in a world where we preach all things are created equal, there are still those who have more equality than others.
"The gender problem is by far and large throughout the world. Men are often seen as having more opportunity than the woman because of their physical strength, positions in families or in the world of business.
"Take for example in the local political arena. Of the 32 government ministries, if we have six headed by a woman we have a lot, and this is after 50 years of Independence. There were more women in the House of Representatives in 1966 than we have now."
She said she does not believe that it is deliberate act on the part of the government to keep women down, rather when the time for choosing who should run for office comes, the person chosen is chosen in the image and likeness of those making the selections, or those the selectors recognise as being political leaders in the past.
"We are living in a country where when babies are abandoned, it is the female parent who is charged with neglect and abandonment. Men don't get punished for abandoning their children. The sexual violence against women that continues to be reported, you don't see those things happening to men.
"In the Middle Eastern countries women feel the full brunt of inequality," said Mahabir-Wyatt.
"I think feminism is just the question in relation to humanism. Human beings lack of humanity towards others."
She added, if human rights which encompass all things that concern the human race, were respected, there would be no need for feminist groups or any UN day of this or that to remind people of what they should be doing.