THE EDITOR, Sir:
I AM heartened by the discussion generated by Mr. Ernie Smith's impractical suggestion. Indeed it is worth all the verbal castigation inflicted on him. I am especially pleased with Dr. Garth Rattray's article of August 12. It is accurate and insightful, putting forth the issues clearly and examining the reasons for our moral and social decline.
Our children are endangered by the wilful and sometimes careless behaviour of the adult population. In fact, we behave as if there are no children among us. Selfishness and greed have blinded us to the fact that we are destroying our children and the future of our society. I sincerely hope that the present focus will not succumb to our usual "nine-day wonder" mentality. We need to improve our parenting and socialisation skills. Children should be taught to respect their bodies and to know their rights in dealing with adults, the fact that they can say "No", when in danger of being exploited by adults (whether these be parents, guardians or other caregivers).
As soon as they can understand they should be made aware of the legal punishment attached to sexual crimes and the risks to which they are exposed when these are done to them. They should also be taught to report offenders who violate them. We need to train children to recognise danger signals and take steps to protect themselves. The home, school, social services and community-based groups should unite in an effort to emancipate our children from sexual and other types of slavery.
The advertising and entertainment industries should be required to do serious house-cleaning and to portray positive values rather than being driven solely by the profit motive.
Let us move from discussion to action. Teach the children self-respect, self-esteem and the destructive nature of greed and promiscuity. The rewards will indeed be great.
I am etc.,
MERTEL. E. THOMPSON (DR.)
kaygen10@hotmail.com
Port Maria
Via Go-Jamaica
