The clitoris in Port Mourant
We were talking about gender based violence in Port Mourant- the group of women and men all between 18 and 40 years of age.
In a side conversation, two of the guys, one married, one unmarried, talk about sexing women, trusting women and being a responsible man - fatherhood, fidelity, and trying hard to show that you could still get as much woman as possible.
The group talked about Female Gender Mutilation, and in response to some puzzled eyebrows.. I talked about how the clitoris is mutilated in some cultures.
I saw some more puzzled faces (men and women), and then I asked if people knew what the Clitoris was.
Some of the guys shook their heads - No; two women laughed, three others looked puzzled.. a few other men and women had blank faces.
So I explained.. about location and function.. and thinking in a wild moment..in these unexpected moments when I do not have pictures, if I had a clitoris, it would have been easier to just show them..
The sex thing continued this week.. an email from a researcher who wanted to interview me.. since she "was under the impression that you do some work around sexuality and/or have done so."
So she sent the interview questions, and here goes, my responses.
I am involved in computer science work mostly with volunteering around domestic violence and child abuse with Help & Shelter. The discussions with young people around domestic violence opens up discussion about sexuality. As a member of SASOD, I have been called pedophile for sharing this story from a teenager. As a participant in the Lower Sixth Programme with the Bishops' High School Old Students' Association , young people have also discussed sex and sexuality with me. I have done things like tell 13/14 year old boys to make sure they try on a condom first before they go to use it in a live situation (with their wives of course)
I think they are learning the same way that we always have.. from overhearing adults, from films, porno, listening to peers (lies and truths) and from reading up and hearing big people say is a bad thing to do. Some young people are targets of sexual harassment and other forms of sexual violence, some might have witnessed sexual violence.
You would have to ask the young people really. Young people are not an amorphous homogenous block. I have seen minibus drivers change music for 'young people'.. while there are young people who are uncomfortable with what is being said in the lyrics. Religion plays a role and culture of course, in terms of how people dress and express their 'sexuality'. Class issues vary.. not sure how class is defined in Guyana these days. I believe young people are also , as they have always been, conscious about hypocrisy in the elders around them. some young people are having transactional sex.
The lyrics in some of the music is scary, violent.. reinforcing sexualities which seem to be anti-female and homophobic. I used to think nobody bothered with lyrics just the beat.. but in some discussions about music with some young people, it is clear the lyrics , music videos and so on are influencing how people use their bodies. Yep, some of the artists should not come to come to Guyana to make their money.. (can't stop the music though - banning music makes it sweeter ). People should also be good to discuss with young people these things, one young woman when I asked her about being daggered said 'is just fun, is not real..."
The little I know, does not seem to be much, and it depends on which school and which teacher. Some schools seem to teach parts of the body early enough, other schools and teachers seem to have discussions about sex and sexuality when dealing with other issues. Other teachers talk about domestic violence and abuse.. for many young people, their experience of sex and sexuality seems couched in violence and power (names for the sexual intercourse, penis, vagina, attitudes to sexual partners, etc)
c. how do you think the education system can better inform young people about sex and sexuality?
The education system is a good place to discuss (inform sounds a bit brainwashing and tedious) sex and sexuality and the consequences with children. The informers though should be aware of what the children know, their own beliefs, practices, feelings and should incorporate those into any discussion. Might be also good to use the schools to talk about sex and sexuality with the parents of the children as well, we assume that adults are well informed about their sexual and reproductive health which is a mistake.
I also believe that the discussions about sex and sexuality should not be separate from discussions about self and spirituality. I have seen some instances where sex education seems to reinforce ideas that our bodies are commodities to be used and traded and that we have no ability to manage our desires and feelings.
Yep..
It was a fascinating time in Guyana in terms of how the amendment came in through the Constitutional Reform, and then the mechanisms used by the then Attorney General and others to scuttle it.
The criminalisation of consensual same-sex activity, even though it is not used for charges, leaves for problems with health care services being provided by Government and leaves LGBT people open to police harassment or even blackmail.
I support the UPR recommendations
The UN is not an external body since Guyana is part of the United Nations. The rights of LGBT people are human rights issues as established by the Yogyakarta Principles. There are some issues such as 'marriage' which are not necessarily priorities for Guyana but the cases for access to services, employment and non-discrimination are important
10)a. In these recent human rights initiatives in Guyana and others around the world, some activists wish to acquire particular rights based on aspects of their and others’ identities, such as gay rights, lesbian rights, women’s rights, for instance, while others demand more general rights. Is naming of identity as part of human rights important to you?
For me personally, there is a need to name the identity when the identities are used as basis for discrimination. President Jagdeo in his comments at the launch of the Men's Affairs Bureau reportedly said he would not 'call the name' when seeming to refer to gay men.
However, identity naming is complex, and what is considered 'gay' in some places, is not necessarily the same in others.
You have introduced another label 'queer' into the discussion. Who knows what the changes in laws would bring about. though the framework would be there to criminalise discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity. There are other discussions which have to happen as well, as happens with any other issue which the society has to deal with.
A tragic legacy of our colonial history and sad, very sad. You know so many people probably have to dress up nice to go and get shoddy service and even pay their lil raise and lunch gifts to the well dressed officials who are dealing with them. I do not support the codes, but we have no choice if we have to do business in Government places.
I hope the court case goes through and that the laws are repealed. This is another legacy of our colonial history which serves no good purpose for anyone. These days.. what passes for women's clothes and men's clothes is very fluid.. so who knows.. I have written about being trans though
The sexual offences reform was necessary. I don't know why the bill took so long to pass. I was in the picket at the time. There was wide consultation on the law, and I think the concerns were mainly about the rights of the accused and some issues of how the law would be implemented.
We already have a western legal system.. that is what we inherited, the homophobia of the slave masters and unfortunately, that continues to remain. Definitely I would hope that the laws are changed to ensure that Guyanese could achieve their full potential in Guyana regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
In a side conversation, two of the guys, one married, one unmarried, talk about sexing women, trusting women and being a responsible man - fatherhood, fidelity, and trying hard to show that you could still get as much woman as possible.
The group talked about Female Gender Mutilation, and in response to some puzzled eyebrows.. I talked about how the clitoris is mutilated in some cultures.
I saw some more puzzled faces (men and women), and then I asked if people knew what the Clitoris was.
Some of the guys shook their heads - No; two women laughed, three others looked puzzled.. a few other men and women had blank faces.
So I explained.. about location and function.. and thinking in a wild moment..in these unexpected moments when I do not have pictures, if I had a clitoris, it would have been easier to just show them..
The sex thing continued this week.. an email from a researcher who wanted to interview me.. since she "was under the impression that you do some work around sexuality and/or have done so."
So she sent the interview questions, and here goes, my responses.
1)What type of work are you involved in? What does your organization do? What is your role there?
I am involved in computer science work mostly with volunteering around domestic violence and child abuse with Help & Shelter. The discussions with young people around domestic violence opens up discussion about sexuality. As a member of SASOD, I have been called pedophile for sharing this story from a teenager. As a participant in the Lower Sixth Programme with the Bishops' High School Old Students' Association , young people have also discussed sex and sexuality with me. I have done things like tell 13/14 year old boys to make sure they try on a condom first before they go to use it in a live situation (with their wives of course)
2)What do you think about the way young people here in Guyana are learning about sex, sexuality, and becoming sexually active?
I think they are learning the same way that we always have.. from overhearing adults, from films, porno, listening to peers (lies and truths) and from reading up and hearing big people say is a bad thing to do. Some young people are targets of sexual harassment and other forms of sexual violence, some might have witnessed sexual violence.
3)What do you think is affecting young peoples’ ideas and beliefs about sex and their sexuality (their ability to act how they want, wear what they want, travel as they want, freely express themselves, etc)? do you think religion plays a role in affecting norms and attitudes towards sexuality? Ethnicity? Class? What about popular culture? Anything else?
You would have to ask the young people really. Young people are not an amorphous homogenous block. I have seen minibus drivers change music for 'young people'.. while there are young people who are uncomfortable with what is being said in the lyrics. Religion plays a role and culture of course, in terms of how people dress and express their 'sexuality'. Class issues vary.. not sure how class is defined in Guyana these days. I believe young people are also , as they have always been, conscious about hypocrisy in the elders around them. some young people are having transactional sex.
4)What do you think about certain forms of popular music that young people listen to here? Do you think this affects young people’s behavior? Should some artists be banned/prevented from entering the country?
The lyrics in some of the music is scary, violent.. reinforcing sexualities which seem to be anti-female and homophobic. I used to think nobody bothered with lyrics just the beat.. but in some discussions about music with some young people, it is clear the lyrics , music videos and so on are influencing how people use their bodies. Yep, some of the artists should not come to come to Guyana to make their money.. (can't stop the music though - banning music makes it sweeter ). People should also be good to discuss with young people these things, one young woman when I asked her about being daggered said 'is just fun, is not real..."
5) a. Do you know anything about sex education in schools? What are children taught in relation to sex and sexuality?
The little I know, does not seem to be much, and it depends on which school and which teacher. Some schools seem to teach parts of the body early enough, other schools and teachers seem to have discussions about sex and sexuality when dealing with other issues. Other teachers talk about domestic violence and abuse.. for many young people, their experience of sex and sexuality seems couched in violence and power (names for the sexual intercourse, penis, vagina, attitudes to sexual partners, etc)
b. Do you know anything about the school curriculum in relation to sex education? is it adequate?
There is an HFLE curriculum, and many schools are open to NGOs and other agencies coming in to talk about sex and sexuality and issues around HIV/AIDs, etc. Some children are not in school though, so ways of engaging the people who are not in school have to be found.c. how do you think the education system can better inform young people about sex and sexuality?
The education system is a good place to discuss (inform sounds a bit brainwashing and tedious) sex and sexuality and the consequences with children. The informers though should be aware of what the children know, their own beliefs, practices, feelings and should incorporate those into any discussion. Might be also good to use the schools to talk about sex and sexuality with the parents of the children as well, we assume that adults are well informed about their sexual and reproductive health which is a mistake.
I also believe that the discussions about sex and sexuality should not be separate from discussions about self and spirituality. I have seen some instances where sex education seems to reinforce ideas that our bodies are commodities to be used and traded and that we have no ability to manage our desires and feelings.
6)Do you think more sexual services need to be made available to young people and people in general?
What are sexual services? That sounds a bit ominous.. if we are talking about health services and advisory services, definitely.. 7)Is sexuality in Guyana different from elsewhere in the world?
I am not sure.. who are we talking about? I don't know enough about the rest of the world, which is a large diverse place. However, I think Guyanese are sexual beings just as any other, and that we seem to have different ways of dealing with this.. with an ambiguous uncertain way of how we deal with our sexuality. 8)Do you think there is a strong link between laws and the ways that people behave?
A complex question.. what are the purpose of laws? So that if people behave in a certain way then they can be penalised..? Hopefully some behaviours would not be displayed. However, we still have high crime rates..9)a. Are you aware of the attempts to amend the Guyanese constitution in 2001 and 2003 (to include a clause protecting people from discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation discrimination)?
Yep..
b. do you have any opinions about this?
It was a fascinating time in Guyana in terms of how the amendment came in through the Constitutional Reform, and then the mechanisms used by the then Attorney General and others to scuttle it.
c. do you think this attempt at reform was necessary or not? Were you involved in this?
yes, the reform was necessary and i was involved in the advocacy to see the reform through d. why do you think these amendments were unsuccessful?
Fear, abject fear from President Jagdeo and others in the government and opposition who felt that they would die and go to hell for sinning in favour of the homosexuals.. and probably fear that the Evangelical Churches and the Muslims would also rebel and pray loudly and comment on the other sins of the political establishment. e. why might the public support or not support this reform?
There are different aspects of the public in my aspect, prejudice is often born of ignorance. We have seen how people like Mr Edghill of the Ethnic Relations Commission wanted to stop a film festival because of this fear that Guyanese people's views can be changed. An article in Hinduism Today deals with the issue of how some Guyanese feel about this issue. f. what do you think about the criminalization of same-sex sexuality Criminal Offenses Act … Title 25, Section 354 – offenses against morality - “Everyone who commits buggery; either with a human being or with any other living creature; shall be guilty of a felony and liable to imprisonment for life”?
The criminalisation of consensual same-sex activity, even though it is not used for charges, leaves for problems with health care services being provided by Government and leaves LGBT people open to police harassment or even blackmail.
g. why do you think these offenses remain on the books? Why are they enforced? Do you think they should be enforced? Or is this something that you would like to see reformed?
Fear of going to hell on the part of the policy makers. The reform should now go through, since the Sexual Offences Act now has gender neutral definitions of rape. These 'sodomy' laws were used in cases of rape.b. Do you know anything about the recent UPR (Universal Periodic Review)
conducted by the UN? In this document, the UN noted that Guyana needs to address sexual rights for the LGBT community. What do you think about this?
I support the UPR recommendations
c. Do you see the state of sexual freedom in Guyana as a human rights issue? What do you think of the fact that it is the UN – a group external to Guyana – is dictating what human rights are? Are anyone’s rights left out of this?
The UN is not an external body since Guyana is part of the United Nations. The rights of LGBT people are human rights issues as established by the Yogyakarta Principles. There are some issues such as 'marriage' which are not necessarily priorities for Guyana but the cases for access to services, employment and non-discrimination are important
10)a. In these recent human rights initiatives in Guyana and others around the world, some activists wish to acquire particular rights based on aspects of their and others’ identities, such as gay rights, lesbian rights, women’s rights, for instance, while others demand more general rights. Is naming of identity as part of human rights important to you?
For me personally, there is a need to name the identity when the identities are used as basis for discrimination. President Jagdeo in his comments at the launch of the Men's Affairs Bureau reportedly said he would not 'call the name' when seeming to refer to gay men.
However, identity naming is complex, and what is considered 'gay' in some places, is not necessarily the same in others.
b. What will the naming of same-sex sexual rights – such as gay rights, lesbian rights, etc - do to Guyanese society? Will it transform it? Do you think changing laws will affect particular spaces in Guyana (for example, will it change the lesbian community? Will more public spaces be open to the LGBT community?)? Will this be positive or negative? (some have argued that changing laws or legalizing same-sex sexuality, for instance, will change queer spaces in the country). If it is legal to be gay/lesbian/bisexual/trans, will Guyanese society be different?
You have introduced another label 'queer' into the discussion. Who knows what the changes in laws would bring about. though the framework would be there to criminalise discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity. There are other discussions which have to happen as well, as happens with any other issue which the society has to deal with.
11)a. how do you feel about dress codes that exist in various government buildings and other establishments in Guyana?
.
b. do you have any opinions about this?
c. do you agree or disagree with them?
d. why might the public support or not support these codes?
A tragic legacy of our colonial history and sad, very sad. You know so many people probably have to dress up nice to go and get shoddy service and even pay their lil raise and lunch gifts to the well dressed officials who are dealing with them. I do not support the codes, but we have no choice if we have to do business in Government places.
12)a. Do you know anything about the current challenge to Guyana’s cross dressing laws (where it is illegal for a man to wear women’s clothing and a woman to wear men’s clothing Section- cross dressing under Section 153 (1) (xlvii) of the Summary Jurisdiction (Offences) Act Chapter 8:02 which criminalises as a minor offence the “wearing of female attire by men; wearing of male attire by women.”)
b. do you have any opinions about this?
c. do you think this is desirable?
d. do you think this challenge will be successful?
e. why might the public support or not support this initiative?
f. what do you think of men wearing women’s clothing and women in men’s clothing?
g. why do you think these offenses remain on the books? Why are they enforced? Do you think they should be? Would you like to see the cross dressing laws reformed?
I hope the court case goes through and that the laws are repealed. This is another legacy of our colonial history which serves no good purpose for anyone. These days.. what passes for women's clothes and men's clothes is very fluid.. so who knows.. I have written about being trans though
13)a. Do you know anything about the Sexual Offenses Bill that was recently – May 2010 - passed into law in Guyana (a law that intends to better protect victims of rape and sexual abuse, especially women and children)?
b. do you have any opinions about this?
c. do you think it’s necessary?
d. why do you think the process to convert the bill into a law took so long? Were you involved in this?
e. why might the public support or not support this law?
The sexual offences reform was necessary. I don't know why the bill took so long to pass. I was in the picket at the time. There was wide consultation on the law, and I think the concerns were mainly about the rights of the accused and some issues of how the law would be implemented.
14)a. Do you feel that Guyana is replicating western legal systems? How do you feel about this?
b. In regards to sexual rights, would you change Guyana’s constitution, laws, or Guyana’s legal system in any way? If so, how and why? If not, why not? We already have a western legal system.. that is what we inherited, the homophobia of the slave masters and unfortunately, that continues to remain. Definitely I would hope that the laws are changed to ensure that Guyanese could achieve their full potential in Guyana regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
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