Call for extension for paid maternity leave (The Tribune)

Press

Jan. 25, 2023 – The Tribune

Equality Bahamas founder, Alicia Wallace featured in The Tribune on January 25, 2023.

From The Tribune:

Ms Wallace believes an increase in paid maternity leave is critical and beneficial for the mother, baby and the entire family as childcare is inaccessible for many.

“The 12 weeks immediately postpartum are known as the fourth trimester as they can be incredibly challenging as mothers recover, while adjusting to the schedule dictated by their newborn baby,” said the Equality Bahamas director.

Call for extension for paid maternity leave (The Tribune)

“Sleep deprivation is, of course common, but there are many other issues that are not generally discussed publicly, from pelvic floor issues to postpartum depression. Paid maternity leave is essential for the health and wellbeing of mothers and children. The increase in maternity leave is critical for mothers themselves, but we can certainly see the benefits for babies and entire families as childcare is inaccessible for many,” she added.

The local activist criticised both the government and employers for failing to adjust the laws and policies of the country to reflect the socio-economic reality of society and developments of the world.

She said: “The prioritisation of businesses and their interests, which are generally limited to profit, over people is leading to tragedy after tragedy.

“The government needs to increase its budget for social assistance and businesses need to value their employees at least to the extent that they expect employees to contribute to their bottom line, and that means investing in their health and wellbeing.”

 

‘Gov’t Stalling on Marital Rape Law’: Activists say women’s rights are not being treated as a priority (The Tribune)

Press

Jan. 17, 2023 – The Tribune

Equality Bahamas founder, Alicia Wallace featured in The Tribune on January 17, 2023.

From The Tribune:

When contacted for comment, Equality Bahamas director Alicia Wallace said women’s rights are not a priority on the government’s agenda.

“By dragging its feet and finding excuses to stall, a clear message is being sent to everyone in The Bahamas that the government is less concerned about women’s right to protection from violence than it is about the issues it attends to and the people it panders to,” Ms Wallace said.

Mr Wilchcombe also told reporters the ongoing consultation includes meetings with church leaders.

‘Gov’t Stalling on Marital Rape Law’: Activists say women’s rights are not being treated as a priority (The Tribune)

“We’re still waiting,” he said. “We haven’t completed (it) yet. We are to move with the president of the Bahamas Baptist Missionary Educational Convention. He wanted to meet with us to discuss a few matters and with members of his church and leadership, we’re waiting for that date.

“We’re hoping to have it done very shortly because in March we intend to have a national women’s convention that will coincide with International Women’s Day,” he said.

However, Ms Wallace said it was “absurd” that the government was waiting on a date to meet with another religious group when there was a symposium held last September which numerous religious leaders attended.

Ms Wallace continued: “The government should not treat this issue as though it is debatable. It is a fact that women are raped, and that in most cases the rapist is known to the victim or survivor. It is a fact that sexual violence is a violation of human rights, and a fact the government is responsible for ensuring that human rights are upheld.

 “The criminalization of marital rape is necessary to give married women equal protection under the law and to affirm personhood and bodily autonomy. There is nothing any group can say to make any of that untrue.”

Ms Wallace said successive administrations have moved quickly on other issues while ignoring people in vulnerable situations.

“The Bahamas will go to the UN in a few months for the Universal Periodic Review. The government needs to pass the bill, or explain why, four years after recommendations were made at the last review at UPR as well as CEDAW, it has failed to do so,” she said.

 

FRONT PORCH: Person of the Year 2022 – Women Activists (The Tribune)

Equality Bahamas founder Alicia Wallace featured as a Front Porch Person of the Year 2022

Jan. 12, 2023 – The Tribune

Equality Bahamas founder, Alicia Wallace featured in The Tribune on January 12, 2023.

From The Tribune:

Still, the women who fought for equality in The Bahamas have included: women in the struggle for majority rule; women who sat in parliament and around the Cabinet table, and pioneers like psychologist and human rights activist Dr Sandra Dean Patterson who has done groundbreaking work on domestic and sexual violence.

FRONT PORCH: Person of the Year 2022
WOMEN ACTIVISTS, THE ONGOING STRUGGLE FOR EQUALITY

They included activists in community organisations and nonprofits; female senior advisors in government; women journalists like Athena Damianos; writers, thinkers and activists such as Marion Bethel, Jeanne I Thompson, Helen Klonaris, various educators and others.

Today, women, including: Dr Dean Patterson; Prodesta Moore, the founder of Women United; Alicia Wallace, columnist and founder of Equality Bahamas; poet and public intellectual Patricia Glinton Meicholas; the Bahamas executives of the Caribbean Institute for Women in Leadership; educator Dr Jacinta Higgs. A new generation of female artists are also advocates for equality.

Equality Bahamas: Prison should not just be for punishment (Eyewitness News)

Press

Dec. 30, 2022, Eyewitness News

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director Alicia Wallace featured in Eyewitness News on December 30, 2022.

From Eyewitness News:

Wallace explained that an individual’s human right should still be upheld, saying that a person, having the right of being in a clean environment and access to healthcare fits into that description.

“We have to consider that the prison, should not just be for punishment, we often focus a lot on punishment after we’ve gone through the so-called, justice system, but don’t necessarily consider that these people will re-enter society.”

Screenshot from the Eyewitness News article "Equality Bahamas: Prison should not just be for punishment"About 98 percent of offenders convicted and sentenced to prison will return to society at some point according to the Minister of National Security, Wayne Munroe, that considered, Wallace stressed the importance of maintaining a prisoner’s dignity and personhood while they serve out their time in BDOCS.

“So there’s this idea that, we say all the time that this person has behaved like an animal, you know put them all in there and treat them like animals, but what does that mean for their psyche and who they become and then who is released back into the general population.

“We are doing ourselves a disservice by not ensuring that when people enter that particular system that they are rehabilitated, that they gain a skill and that they are able to become decent members of society when they return because most of them do return,” Wallace stated.

 

On the Clock with Erin Greene : 16 Days of Activism & Femicide Awareness Day (Guardian Radio)

Dec. 6, 2022 – Guardian Radio 96.9FM

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director Alicia Wallace featured in Guardian Radio’s On the Clock with Erin Greene on December 6, 2022.

Tune in from 18:40 to hear about our 16 Days of Activism campaign and Femicide Awareness Day.

Listen back to the replay below.

Equality Bahamas renews call for gov’t action on gender-based violence (Eyewitness News)

Press

Nov. 25, 2022 – Eyewitness News

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director Alicia Wallace featured in Our News on November 25, 2022.

From Eyewitness News:

In a statement, Equality Bahamas underscored that gender-based violence is not limited to domestic violence and intimate partner violence, but also includes structural violence, and discriminatory laws.

“The law sets a standard and it informs behavior. There must be action to prevent and to intervene, and it cannot be limited to interpersonal relationships,” said Alicia Wallace, Director of Equality Bahamas.

“The legal exception in the Sexual Offences Act on rape, for example, wrongfully communicates that it is acceptable for men to rape their wives. In its supposed attempt to address this issue with an amendment to criminalize marital rape, the government has invited a debate on women’s human rights rather than acknowledging its obligation and taking the appropriate action. Ending gender-based violence requires legislative reform.” 

Activists demand greater protection for women (The Tribune)

Press

Nov. 22, 2022 – The Tribune

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director Alicia Wallace featured in The Tribune on November 22, 2022.

From The Tribune:

 When contacted for comment on the sexual assault reports, Equality Bahamas Director Alicia Wallace yesterday expressed her dismay on the treatment of women.

“Women live with the perpetual fear of rape,” she said. “We are constantly assessing our environments and, at the encouragement of others, including law enforcement, making our worlds smaller in the effort to avoid being raped.

“The reality is that we are not at fault and we do not put ourselves at risk. We are living in a world, and a country, where rape culture has become the norm.”

Ms Wallace highlighted how most rape incidents are perpetrated by men known to the women being violated. She said that women are not fully protected in their own relationships, homes, and that the ongoing conversation of marital rape has proven that.

When asked what could be done to address the issue of sexual violence in the country, Ms Wallace said: “Addressing the issue of sexual violence requires compliance with international mechanisms, including CEDAW, mandatory comprehensive sexuality education in all schools, public campaigns on gender equality and women’s rights, ongoing training for law enforcement and all professions that come into contact with survivors.”

Ms Wallace said it is not enough to be “saddened” or “horrified” by the reports of sexual violence, but rather there needs to be work done to make an active change.

“We all have the responsibility to talk to the men and boys in our lives about sexual violence and to make it clear that not only does no mean ‘no’, but only yes means ‘yes’, and consent is absolutely mandatory.”

She added that the Global 16 Days campaign will begin on Friday, with the International Day of Elimination of Violence Against Women, and Equality Bahamas has a series of events lined up, focused on the theme “Let’s End Femicide.”

Activist: Bishop’s statement important (The Tribune)

Press

Oct. 26, 2022 – The Tribune

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director Alicia Wallace featured in The Tribune on October 26, 2022

From The Tribune:

“This is important as many denominations have failed to be publicly vocal in their support, and many others have chosen to, instead, support rapists,” Equality Bahamas director Alicia Wallace said when contacted for comment yesterday about Bishop Boyd’s statements.

“When ‘the church’ is discussed in public discourse, particularly in reference to human rights, it is seen as a barrier to the progress we need to make as a country, both in la

w and in our beliefs and behaviour.

“It is important for rights-minded people and institutions to be heard, especially in the midst of a false debate about bodily autonomy and the definition of rape.

“Boyd clearly stated that rape is violence and the right to protection from violence is not lost as a result of marriage,” Ms Wallace said.

On the Clock with Erin Greene : #Strike5ive Campaign (Guardian Radio)

Oct. 25, 2022 – Guardian Radio 96.9FM

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director Alicia Wallace featured in Guardian Radio’s On the Clock with Erin Greene on October 25, 2022.

Tune in from 12:35 – 22:20 and then from 41:10 until the end of the show to hear about our #Strike5ive campaign and  amendments Equality Bahamas proposes for certain legislation.

Watson apology ‘not accepted’ (The Tribune)

Press

Oct. 20, 2022 – The Tribune

Equality Bahamas founder and co-director, Alicia Wallace featured in The Tribune on October 20, 2022.

From The Tribune:


Recently, Women United said some women and organisations who have called for legislative reform in The Bahamas include the Crisis Centre, Prodesta Moore of BUYDC and Women United, Alicia Wallace from Equality Bahamas, Shervonn Hollis of 242 Domestic Violence Support Network,

Cindy Godet, Khandi Gibson of FOAM, Marissa Mason- Smith of Zonta, Charlene Paul of CIWiL, other officials, along with many other women activists and advocacy groups.