Calls continue for school to apologise over treatment of indigenous student
“…This is the latest in a string of abuses against indigenous Guyanese. This one has been reported. There have been lots of unreported ones. Indigenous Guyanese are rising. We are becoming educated people, we are becoming powerful people, and should we hold one head, I hate to refer to Guyana’s nasty politics, but should we hold one head and decide to swing the vote in either direction… we’re gonna get the last laugh,” Klautky warned.
“Should they not give a proper apology—we do not consider that balderdash that was issued [Tuesday] as an apology—well this protest seems like we’re gonna have to continue,” he added.
The Mae’s Schools, in its official statement, cited the country’s lack of a policy governing exposure of children as one of the challenges in dealing with the issue.
“Are we sexualising a little child? That’s the question I wanna ask the school…if you go to indigenous communities or wherever indigenous culture is displayed and you see some little kids, would you feel that they’re inappropriate because that’s the way they’re dressed? That’s their culture, that’s our culture, so why should it be offensive to anybody else?” Smith questioned.
Another protestor, Merrano Isaacs, sharing Smith’s sentiment. “People tend to jump on and oh, they so proud…and in September they’re very proud to say, ‘Oh, my great grandmother was Amerindian’ and so, but don’t use it conveniently. If you’re proud of the indigenous tradition, be proud of it and don’t use it for convenience… These things— cassava bread, piwari, farine and so— are what the indigenous people use every single day. And maybe in terms of the dress they don’t, but you go into any of the villages, the children play and run around with next to nothing sometimes because of the heat,” he pointed out.
Michael McGarrell, of the Amerindian Peoples Association (APA), said that while he could understand a need for policies to deal with such issues as decent and indecent exposure, indigenous heritage cannot be bound by policy.
“…This is our culture we’re talking about. Our culture should never be governed by a policy. I mean, if you want to talk about a policy in terms of exposure, then maybe deal with it with carnival and Mashramani…if you want to talk about a policy for exposure then deal with those things, not with our culture. Our culture is ours and it’s not one to be messed with, it’s not one to play with. You can’t put restrictions on our culture,” he asserted.
McGarrell reiterated the need for sensitisation sessions on indigenous culture to be held within the school, not only for the students but for teachers as well. He noted that the APA had planned to meet with the administration to discuss the way forward, but related that that meeting
had been postponed by the school.
However, in the meantime, McGarrell, like the others, awaits some show of remorse from the administration.
“We’re expecting nothing less than an apology from Mae’s. I think their release was just basically adding insult to injury and it’s not one that we can accept. As someone who proclaims to be promoting social cohesion, the release in itself does not actually do that…because what it did was that it was blaming other children for example, for humiliating that child, which is not true,” he said.
“Mae’s could have used this as a teaching experience…I think they failed to do that and as an institution that says they’re one of the premier institutions, they should know better and teachers should know better working at the school that hear what, every opportunity is a learning opportunity and we can teach children. So, I think they failed in that regard and they failed in properly addressing the issue in their release,” he added.
Karen Small, the child’s mother, once again expressed thanks for the support the family has been receiving in the matter. Apart from the group protesting the school, there has been a social media campaign, in which persons from regions 8 and 9 have posted photographs showcasing placards bearing the hashtag “#indigenousisnotinappropriate.”
Small related that in spite of her initial desire to remove her son from the school, he remains there in the meantime, per his request.
“How do you tell a child not to go when all his life you told him to stand up for what he believes in and to embrace? Now if you say don’t go to school because of this, then what are you telling them? So I supported him and I said well if this is what you want,” Small stated, relating that he has had no problems since his return to school, from his peers or teacher, who has been supportive.
The family is still to determine their way forward on the matter.