I just spend about 30 minutes writing up a post which I can not publish. It is relating to my son finding audio recordings of me singing in German, and us both in a rural village in Kenya … during the post and explaining all of this my son goes from laughing to sad to near arrogantly (bite cutely) conceited saying ‘Well, I am glad that I now know exactly how cute I was. I didn’t know babies were that cute and smart so young.’ (I raised him humble didn’t I).
The sad is the interesting part of the story… but after writing it, I realised that despite everything I talk about in regard to equality and taking a stand for women’s rights – if I published the piece and was honest in the content – I would be putting my son and I in a compromised and unsafe position.
This may suprirse people, but it is a reality even now.
There is something wrong with a system in which I need to censor my advocacy on an issue in order to stay safe.
It is a system in which the perpetrator of domestic abuse could be granted 50% custody at the drop of a hat – and can also work in hospitals.
This is a system in which perpetrators of abuse can still hold a security licence – even after being called to court for various counts of criminal fraud and removed as a contractor from the biggest medical facility in the state for threatening patients and illegally sharing patient information.
We live in a messed up system.
Like the breastfeeding, trauma recovery and PMS comments in my last post…. if you have not experienced this – you don’t know this.
It is really, really not okay.
Josie Young 