(Photo courtesy of WhirlWind Entertainment)
Tek Yuh Hand Off A Mi challenges the local plague of domestic abuse and deaths
One woman was beaten by her lover and thrown into a canal; an unsuspecting woman was burned by acid thrown at her by her abusive common-law husband; and two teenage girls have been found brutally murdered. These are just four out of the hundreds of domestic violence and female death cases in Jamaica reported annually. In 2016, on the helm of an era of changing paradigms supporting previously marginalised and scrutinised groups, there is, nonetheless, a frightening pattern evolving among men who feel they’ve been wronged.
Domestic abuse is a repeatedly highlighted social ill affecting both females and males in the Jamaican society. During the early 2000s, there was an 8 per cent increase in murders fueled by domestic violence. By 2003, domestic violence was the motive behind 23.7 per cent of local murders, as deciphered by an Economic and Social Survey conducted by the Planning Institute of Jamaica. In 2016 alone, within the span of six months, the public had seen an alarming rise in reported cases of abuse in the media.
Although domestic violence affects both males and females, recent cases have seen females as the primary targets. These cases inspired the Hands Off Me movement – an initiative geared towards the protection and rehabilitation of abused women. The movement has also joined in raising awareness of domestic violence through the play, Tek Yuh Hand Off A Me, written by Michael Dawson and Michael Nicholson.
Tek Yuh Hand Off A Me not only spotlights domestic violence, but also other significant negative societal expectations that tend to obstruct females in Jamaica. The play involves an intricate web of verbal, emotional and domestic abuse explored through an intimate extramarital affair between Karen, an administrative assistant with dreams of becoming an accounting executive, and Vincent, a successful businessman. Typical to familiar local domestic abuse cases, Vincent uses money, promises of prosperity and physical force to anchor and drive fear into Karen, all while dissuading her from personal and professional advancement. The dependence is further cemented by Karen’s traditional and overbearing mother, who constantly pressures and reminds her of the benefits of her daughter’s arrangement.
This production comes during a transitional period of the realisation of the personal and professional strengths and capabilities of women in Jamaica and globally, and hopes to catalyse the paradigm shift towards the protection of females and their rights.
