Reflections on the Women's Movement in Trinidad: Calypsos, Changes and Sexual Violence

Abstract

Women in Trinidad have made enormous gains during the last twenty years in relation to equality in education, employment and equal pay. Nevertheless, there has been a backlash which is experienced by all women regardless of class, ethnicity, professional standing, or position. It is as if the society (read male-dominated patriarchy) allows women freedom on the one hand, but ensures that there are still mechanisms for control. My hypothesis is that violence, the ultimate and most fundamental form of control over a person, is the mechanism which is used to keep women from 'getting outta hand' in Trinidad. The lyrics of some calypsos give us a revealing picture of attitudes to changing gender relations, and in particular to violence towards women.

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