igds calendar201314 3/4/13 10:29 am page...

IGDS Calendar201314 3/4/13 10:29 AM

The years 2013 and 2014 mark major milestones in thehistory of the Institute for Gender & DevelopmentStudies. They will be celebrated as the 20th

anniversary of the critical and path-breaking decision in theAcademic Year 1993/94 to facilitate the transition from theWomen and Development Studies Project (WDS) to theestablishment of a Centre for Gender & DevelopmentStudies (now an autonomous Institute), with Units at theMona, Cave Hill and St Augustine campuses of theUniversity of the West Indies. I am proud to see how far wehave come since then as I was there in the trenches workingwith the many women of the WDS Groups that lobbied forabout 11 years for the establishment of the Centre in order toget gender on the agenda.

Over the last 20 years, these Units have togetherdeveloped their Mission, Vision and Strategy, aligned withthose of the wider UWI, that seek to ensure that the idealgraduate will not only have a desire for knowledge, strongcritical thinking and problem-solving skills, but alsocompetence in interdisciplinary gender analysis that willenable her/him to question historically accepted andcontemporary theories and explanations about society andhuman behaviour and examine the origins of powerdifferences between and amongst men and women.

The establishment and growth of the IGDS would nothave been possible without the dedicated work of activists,scholars and scholar-activists, women (including theforemothers Peggy Antrobus, Barbara Bailey, KathleenDrayton, Marlene Hamilton, Elsa Leo-Rhynie, JoycelynMassiah, Lucille Mathurin Mair and Hermione McKenzie),and men (e.g., Zabbar Ali, Hilary Beckles, Lloyd Brathwaite,John Campbell, Barry Chevannes, Hamid Farabi, MarkFigueroa, Barry Higman, Linden Lewis, Alister McIntyre, RexNettleford) and so many others, inside and outside of theformal UWI system, who either facilitated the development ofthe IGDS through their administrative decisions, or, throughtheir teaching, public speeches and writings, developed abody of work that advanced gender discourses nationally,regionally and internationally. They span generations, buteach generation has learnt from the previous one andadvanced the field of gender studies.

This 2-year calendar highlights just a sample of these“gender warriors” from across the Caribbean, without whomthe IGDS would have been just a shadow of itself and thefields of gender studies, feminism and human rights thepoorer. They are/were people of different faiths andphilosophical orientations, including Garveyites,Rastafarians and feminists. They are/were community

workers, economists,trained educators at theprimary, secondary andtertiary levels, novelists,journalists, tradeunionists, newspaperfounders; civil rightsactivists, philanthropists,poets, diplomats, entrepreneurs, social workers, historians,sociologists, political scientists, nurses and so much more.But whatever their philosophy and disciplinary training, theyare/were all united around the issues of human rights,gender justice and the fight to end colonialism/neo-colonialism, classism, sexism and racism. I continue to learnfrom, and be inspired by them.

There is much more to be done to mainstream genderand recognize the tremendous output of the IGDS, but maythe work and lives of those we have highlighted inspire thecurrent students and staff in the IGDS as well as all thoseinterested in gender justice and women's rights to continueon the path to create a better world where diversity isrespected. Together we can, together we must!

Message from the University Director, IGDS

Verene A. ShepherdJanuary 2013


REGIONALCOORDINATING UNIT

Institute for Gender and Development Studies The University of the West Indies Regional HeadquartersHermitage RoadKingston 7, Jamaica

Tel: 876-927-1660-9, ext. 2494 or 2964;876-927-1913

Fax: 876-927-0641

E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.uwi.edu/igdsFacebook: IGDS.UWI

ST. AUGUSTINE UNITThe University of the West IndiesSt. AugustineTrinidad & Tobago

Tel: 868-662-2002 ext 83549Fax: 868-662-2002 ext 83572

E-mail: [email protected]: www.sta.uwi.edu/igdsFacebook: IGDSStAugustineUnitFlickr: igds_sta_uwiYou Tube Channel: igdsuwistaugustine

CAVE HILL: NITA BARROW UNIT

The University of the West IndiesCave Hill Campus, P.O. Box 64Bridgetown, Barbados BB11000

Tel: 246-417-4490/4493Fax: 246-424-3822

E-mail: [email protected]: www.gender.cavehill.uwi.edu

MONA CAMPUS UNITThe University of the West IndiesSir Alister McIntyre BuildingKingston 7, Jamaica

Tel: 876-977-7365Fax: 876-977-9053

E-mail: [email protected]: www.mona.uwi.edu/igdsFacebook: igdsmona

Contact us...


1 New Year’s Day & Independence Day (Haiti)2 Ancestor’s Day (Haiti)18-31 Respectful Relationships Ad Campaign a collaboration of ASPIRE, UNWomen,

IGDS STA and Citizen’s Security Programme (Trinidad & Tobago)21 Errol Barrow Day (Barbados)

Andaiyehas for several decades been active in the publiclife of her country, Guyana. She was a foundingmember of the Working People’s Alliance in1978/79, where she worked as Coordinator andEditor, International Secretary and Women'sSecretary, until 2000. From 1987 - 1992 sheworked with the Women and Development Unit ofthe University of the West Indies (WAND), andfrom 1987-1996 with CARICOM, where she was a resource person during preparationsfor the 1995 Beijing Conference. She played a leading role in the move towardsmeasuring unwaged work. She was also an executive member of the CaribbeanAssociation for Feminist Research and Action (CAFRA). Andaiye is one of thefounders of Red Thread, a 23 year old women's organization whose focus is the needsand interests of grassroots women. She has worked since 2000 as one of itsCoordinators, focusing particularly on relations with other groups in the GlobalWomen's Strike (GWS). Andaiye is also a member of Women of Colour in the GWS andthe International Women Count Network. She has published several scholarly essays,written newspaper columns and edited and/or copy-edited Walter's Rodney's lastbooks. A cancer survivor, Andaiye was one of the founders of the Guyana CancerSociety and the Cancer Survivors’ Action Group. She is the recipient of a numberawards, including the Arrow of Achievement in Guyana, for her work with women.


Dame GwendolynMoreen Tonge,

a champion of women's issues in Antigua, wasborn in Seatons Village in that island onOctober 3, 1923. 1980 she was appointed bythe Government of Antigua and Barbuda asDirector of the Women's Desk. She held thatposition through subsequent changes in theorganization (Women's Affairs andDirectorate of Gender Affairs). Mrs. Tonge was appointed as Senator-ParliamentarySecretary for Women and Gender Affairs. She was later appointed to serve as aspecial Adviser to the Hon. Minister of Home Affairs, Urban Development Renewal,Medical benefits and Social Improvement. She was the recipient of many outstandingawards including MBE Queen's Birthday Award, OBE Queen's New Year Award,Order of Honour (Antigua and Barbuda) the International Women's Day Award,Home Economics awards from Antigua and Barbuda and the Caribbean awards forCommunity Humanitarian Service from the University of Guelph (Canada). InNovember 2006, Mrs Tonge was invested as a Dame Commander of the MostDistinguished Order of the Nation of Antigua and Barbuda, the nation's highesthonour and in 2012 the National Heroes Day Committee recommended that she beconferred with the title of National Hero for the 2013 National Heroes Day event. Shedied in 2012.

1 World AIDS Day9 National Heroes Day:Antigua and Barbuda 10 Human Rights Day25 Christmas Day26 Boxing Day


6 International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation7 Independence Day (Grenada)10 Chinese New Year (Suriname)12 Sexual and Reproductive Health Awareness Day 13 Ash Wednesday15 Book Launch Bindi- The Multi-faceted Lives of Indo-Car ibbean Women edited by

Rosanne Kanhai. A collaboration of IGDS STA and Hindu Women's Organization(Trinidad & Tobago)

20 World Day of Social Justice22 Independence Day (St. Lucia)23 Republic Mashramani (Guyana)

Keturah Cecelia Babb(neé Nicholas) is a Rastafari woman whosephilosophy is to shine the empress in everywoman. Keturah's mother, who taught heralways to have her own money and make herown decisions, is her greatest influence andmotivator in her activism on behalf ofwomen. Keturah has special interest inwomen's economic security, and women'sparticipation in political decision-making. She is devoted to gender justice andthis has led to her involvement in a range of projects for the empowerment ofwomen at national, regional and international levels. She has worked as ateacher, guest lecturer, a researcher in agriculture, and an activist on women'sissues within the NGO sector with the aims of democratising the ownership ofinformation and knowledge to elevate the grass-roots communities of which sheis a part. She is a national of Dominica by birth, Barbados by marriage, and ofthe Caribbean by choice. Keturah enjoys her roles as daughter, sister, wife,mother, grand-mother and friend in a very large family.


Nelcia Robinson,woman's rights and youth activist, has for decadesbeen involved in advocacy work across the Caribbean.Born in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, she receivedher B.Sc. Degree in Human Services from SpringfieldCollege in the United States. She was a recipient ofthe Kellogg Fellowship in International Development. InSt. Vincent and the Grenadines, she was an executivemember of the National Youth Council, president of theNational Council of Women, coordinator of ServingHousebound and Retired Elderly (SHARE), national facilitator for the CaribbeanNetwork for Integrated Rural Development (CNIRD), president of the Association ofSocial Workers, and president of the National Association of Mass Education. Shehas been the coordinator of the Caribbean Association of Indigenous People since1987, an executive member of the Caribbean Women's Association (CARIWA), anexecutive member of the Caribbean Council of and for the Blind, coordinator of theCaribbean Gender and Trade Network since 1999, and between 1996 and 2009 Nelciawas the coordinator for the Caribbean Association for Feminist Research and Action(CAFRA). Her remarkable contribution has been recognised through several awards.These include a Humanitarian Award for Women of Great Esteem, the CNIRD RegionalAward for Women, the NEMO Award for Women in Disaster Management, and theQueen's Diamond Jubilee Medal.

1 Independence Day (Antigua & Barbuda)3 Independence Day (Dominica)14 Caribbean Women: Catalysts for Change Lecture (Barbados) 19 International Men's Day & Garifuna Settlement Day (Belize)20 Universal Children's Day25 International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women &

Independence Day (Suriname)30 Independence Day (Barbados)TBA Divali (Trinidad & Tobago, Guyana)


Women's History Month8 International Women's Day & UN Day for Women's Rights and International Peace9 National Heroes and Benefactors Day (Belize)11 Launch of "Groundings with the Brothers" (Jamaica) 15 Book Launch- Love and Power: Caribbean Discourses of Gender (Barbados)

International Women’s Day Commemoration & Dorian Powell Prize Ceremony (Jamaica)25-27 Inaugural Caribbean Conference on Domestic Violence and Gender Equality (Tobago)29 Good Friday30 Spiritual Baptist Liberation/ Shouter Baptist Day (Trinidad & Tobago)

The Hon. Maize IreneBarker-Welch,

BCH, CHB, (Barbados Centennial Honour,Companion Honour of Barbados), and avidpromoter of women's causes, was born inBarbados on September 17,1927. Her teachingcareer spans the St. Bernard's School, theSt. Gabriel Girls' School; the FoundationGirls' School; the Ursuline Convent andCodrington High School. She was a Dorothy Cadbury Fellow at Selly Oak Universityin Birmingham, UK, in 1982-83. Hon. Barker-Welch was Vice President and President ofthe Barbados National Organisation of Women (NOW) founded in 1970; NOW'srepresentative in the Caribbean Women's Association (CARIWA) and Barbados'representative at the first UN Conference for Women on Population Development in1973. She was Barbados' delegate to the Inter American Commission of Women in 1986-1994, President of the Business and Professional Women's Club of Barbados, andRegional Coordinator for the English speaking Caribbean and USA, Canada -attending its worldwide conferences. In 1986, Hon. Barker-Welch entered Parliament asthe Democratic Labour Party (DLP) representative for the St. Joseph Constituency.She was appointed Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Labour and CommunityDevelopment, also serving in other ministries including the Ministry for Women'sAffairs. She was appointed Senator from 1991-1994.


Hermione McKenzie,Grenadian born, is a stalwart of theCaribbean women's movement is the currentPresident of the Association of Women'sOrganisations of Jamaica (AWOJA). ACaribbean Sociologist, Mrs McKenzie servedas a Senior Lecturer in the UWI Mona'sDepartment of Sociology, Psychology andSocial Work for over 40 years. She is a graduate of the London School of Economicsand Brandeis University and has published widely on gender issues, family planning,education and social development policies. Mrs McKenzie has prepared numerousreports for the Jamaican Government, Statutory and Private Sector Organisations onissues ranging from family planning and community development to socio-economicdevelopment in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean. She has served as a member of theJamaica Council of Voluntary Social Services, Family Planning Board, YWCA,Canadian Upliftment Services Organization and the Bureau of Women's Affairs amongothers. She also served as a member of the Jamaican delegation to the UN's 'End-of-Decade Conference' on Women in Nairobi in 1985 and was former Convenor of theWomen's Studies Working Group at the UWI, Mona.

Breast Cancer Awareness Month15 International Day of Rural Women21 National Heroes Day (Jamaica)27 Independence Day (St.Vincent & the Grenadines)


Child Abuse Prevention Month1 Easter Monday 28 National Heroes' Day (Barbados)29 Book Launch- Love and Power: Caribbean Discourses of Gender (Jamaica)

Hazel Brown,has been professionally involved in research,

social development and communityorganisation projects since 1969. Her specificarea of focus has been in the area of povertyeradication, consumer affairs and inpromoting gender equity. She has organisedand conducted numerous seminars and workshops pursuant to these ends incollaboration with government ministries, CARICOM, Commonwealth organizationsand UN agencies. She is an outstanding Caribbean woman leader and has visited andworked with women's organizations and leaders in all Commonwealth Caribbeancountries on matters related to consumer affairs, politics, development and genderequity issues. Ms. Brown has also been a founding member of the Network of NGOs ofTrinidad and Tobago for the Advancement of Women, formed in 1985 to present theposition of women in Trinidad and Tobago at the End of Decade Conference inNairobi. She is the past Secretary General of the Commonwealth Women's Networkand has been engaged in Commonwealth activities since the first CommonwealthPeople's Forum at CHOGM in Harare in 19991. She has an outstanding record ofcommunity service and is the recipient of numerous awards and commendations.


Joycelin Massiahis Guyanese by birth, and a citizen ofBarbados with several years of service inJamaica. Professor Massiah was the firstfemale Head of a Department, Cave HillCampus, Barbados (UWI); first Caribbeanfemale Professor, Faculty of Social Science,first female Director of the Institute of Social and Economic Research, and firstCoordinator of major research about women in the region. Her groundbreaking 1986work, The Women in the Caribbean Project (WICP), provided the English-speakingCaribbean with its first research about women's realities from women's perspective.Professor Massiah held the post of Regional Programme Advisor, UNIFEM CaribbeanOffice and was honoured with the CARICOM Triennial Award for Women in 1999.Barbados also honoured her with the Gold Crown of Merit. In a 1999 interview withCAFRA, Professor Massiah said: “The women of my mother's generation did whatthey had to do and they've done it well. Those of mine built on it and carried it forward,particularly in research and analysis….The next generation has the task of finding astronger link between the women's movement and government. This relationship willhave to be re-crafted if we are to make any substantial move forward.”(http://www.cafra.org/spip.php?article479; http://www.cafra.org/spip.php?article483)

16 National Heroes Day (St Kitts & Nevis)19 Independence Day (St. Kitts & Nevis)21 Independence Day (Belize)24 Republic Day (Trinidad & Tobago)22-28 (International) Peace WeekTBA Book Launch: History of IGDS (Jamaica)


Kathleen Drayton(née McCracken) was born in Trinidad andTobago on December 02, 1930. Along withher then husband, Dr Harry Drayton, sheassisted in the setting up of the Universityof Guyana in 1963. Her long andoutstanding service to the University of theWest Indies began in 1973 when she joinedthe staff in the Faculty of Education at the Cave Hill Campus. Kathleen Drayton wasamong the intrepid band of women educators who lobbied for and succeeded increating the Women and Development Studies programme which eventually becamethe Centre for Development and Gender Studies and now, The UWI Institute forGender and Development Studies: Nita Barrow Unit. Drayton has long been widelyrecognised for her various roles in education, the arts and activism with non-government organisations. Her activism extended into her retirement years. Unable toignore injustice or discrimination whenever she encountered them, she helped establishthe Barbados Association of Retired Persons (BARP) and at the time of her death, in2009, was its President.

1 Labour Day (Barbados)5 Indian Heritage Day (Guyana)12 Mother's Day20 Whit Monday (Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada,

Monsterrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines)26 Independence Day (Guyana)30 Indian Arrival Day (Trinidad & Tobago)30 Corpus Christi (Haiti, Grenada, St Lucia,Trinidad & Tobago)

IGDS Calendar201314 3/4/13 3:03 PM

Claudia Jones

Boyce Davies, Left of Karl Marx: The Political Life of Blac k Communist Claudia Jones , Durham, NC: DukeUniversity Press, 2007

1 Emancipation Day (Bahamas, Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St Kitts & Nevis,St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines,Trinidad & Tobago)& Kadooment Day (Barbados)

4 Emancipation/Freedom day/August Monday (Dominica, Grenada) 6 Independence Day (Jamaica)12 International Youth Day31 Independence Day (Trinidad & Tobago)TBA EId-Ul-Fitr (Guyana, Suriname,Trinidad & Tobago)


born in Belmont, Trinidad and Tobago in 1915,migrated to the United States as a child, was aradical activist within a communist, Marxist, BlackFeminist vein. Jones joined the communist partyin 1936, and came under FBI surveillance a fewyears later. She was first imprisoned in 1948, andthen deported in 1955, becoming the only Blackwoman expelled from the United States on the basis of communism. In England, shecontinued her struggle against capitalism, racism, and male supremacy. Following aseries of racial attacks in Notting Hill, she organized London's first carnival in 1959.Timed to coincide with Trinidad's Carnival, the accompanying brochure stated “Apeople's art is the genesis of their freedom”. She also founded one of the firstnewspapers aimed at the Black community in London, the . InJones' own words, “we can accelerate the militancy of Negro women to the degree withwhich we demonstrate that the economic, political and social demands of Negro womenare not just ordinary demands, but special demands flowing from special discriminationfacing Negro women as women, and as workers and as Negroes.” (Jones, 1951). Shedied in 1965.

1 International Children's Day12 World Day Against Child Labour16 Fathers' Day19 Labour Day (Trinidad & Tobago)

Joan French’slife has been one of tireless activism forwomen's socio-cultural and political progress.As part of the primary school cohort thatgained free places to secondary education forthe first time in 1956, she attended St AndrewHigh School and later received the JamaicaCentenary Scholarship in 1964. She gained theBachelor of Arts in Language Studies, aMaster of Arts in International Relations fromLondon University and Diploma in Education from UWI, Mona. As President of theNational Union of Democratic Teachers, she led revolutionary measures such asmaternity leave for unmarried teachers. Associated with the political left of the 70s,French struggled to get their attention to women's issues and became involved with theSistren Theatre Collective. She was a Board member of the Women's Resource andOutreach Centre, a founding member of the Caribbean Association for FeministResearch and Action, Coordinator of the Caribbean Policy Development Centre; 1991-1995, and was involved in discussions leading to the establishment of the IGDS. She hascontributed with Honor Ford-Smith to expanding knowledge through Sistren Research.French joined the United Nations in 1996, as the UNICEF Regional Advisor for Women inthe Americas and Caribbean Regional Office in Bogota, Colombia, then became Chief ofGender at UNICEF Headquarters in New York; 1998-2002. From 2003 to 2007 she servedas UNICEF's country representative to Burkina Faso, West Africa, where she madeoutstanding contributions to the advancement of girls' education.


Photo courtesy of National Library of Jamaica

10 Independence Day (Bahamas)31 Emancipation Commemoration Vigils/Events


Amy Jacques Garveyborn in 1895 was a Jamaican writer, poet andcivil rights leader for Black and women'sliberation. She moved to Harlem in 1917 whereshe met Marcus Garvey. She becameinvolved with editing and publishing newspaper. Jacques addressedfeminist issues in a page called “Our Womenand What They Think.” She became the second wife of Marcus Garvey in 1922. AmyJacques Garvey helped in most aspects of Marcus Garvey's businesses. She educatedpeople about Black consciousness, self-help and economic independence. It is saidthat due to her dedication to promoting Marcus Garvey's work the term Garveyismshould also be applied to her. She was mainly responsible for continuing MarcusGarvey's legacy by editing and the publication of three volumes of . During the 1940s she was the contributing editor to thejournal The African which was published in Harlem. In 1944 she wrote “A MemorandumCorrelative of Africa, West Indies and the Americas” which she sent to representativesof the United Nations urging them to adopt an African Freedom Charter.She died in 1973.

Amy Ashwood Garveyborn in 1897, was the co-founder of theUniversal Negro Improvement Association(UNIA) with her husband Marcus MosiahGarvey. She was an influential politicalactivist, journalist, music producer,playwright, artist, lecturer andbusinesswoman. In 1914 she met MarcusGarvey in Kingston and she became UNIA's first secretary and a member of themanagement board. Garvey co-founded it's Ladies' Auxiliary Wing. She marriedMarcus Garvey in New York in 1919 and they established the American headquarters ofthe UNIA there. After her divorce in 1922 Ashwood Garvey gave lectures on Black self-determination, Pan-Africanism and women's rights internationally. In 1924 she co-founded the Nigerian Progress Union. She was a founder member of the 'InternationalAfrican Service Bureau' and between 1935 and 1938 she managed a restaurant inLondon where Pan-Africanists met. In 1945 she helped to organize the fifth Pan-African Congress in Manchester where she delivered a presentation on women'sempowerment. Amy Ashwood Garvey worked with the feminist activist Claudia Jonesto promote the Notting Hill carnival in London. This was important as a means for Blackpeople to celebrate their culture and defy racism. She died in 1969. Photo courtesy of National Library of Jamaica

1-31 10th Caribbean Institute in Gender and De velopment (Barbados) 10 Independence Day (Bahamas)31 Emancipation Commemoration Vigils/Events


Nalita Gajadhar’sname is synonymous with feminist activism

and advocacy in Barbados. For over 25years she has advocated for women's rightsand social justice. She has served as thePresident of the National Organisation ofWomen and President of the Business andProfessional Women's Club. Gajadharcurrently works as a Programme Officer with the Bureau of Gender Affairs. She ismotivated by a passion for people and a lifelong involvement in anti-violence work andcommunity engagement. In her voice: “before there was a shelter or a notion of what ashelter was I grew up in a house where my mother made our home a shelter. Many anight you shared a bed with people in the community who ran from violence. My motheralways opened the door to let the woman and the children in and she would stand atthe door and face down the man who was racing after the woman. So it was justsomething that I have lived. I guess I just continued to do it. But I don't do it the sameway my mother did. I do it through the [women's] groups I have joined and the kind ofadvocacy that I do.”

1 International Children's Day9 Whit Monday (Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada,

Monsterrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines)12 World Day Against Child Labour16 Fathers' Day19 Labour Day (Trinidad & Tobago)


Audrey Layne Jeffersborn in Trinidad in 1898, emerged in an era ofdeveloping feminist thought. Fondly known asthe Mother of Trinidadian Philanthropy,Jeffers shaped the notion of “communitycare,” where communities were influenced toplay an active role in lifting those most in needamong them. In 1920, she established a schoolserving black middle-class children, earningJeffers a reputation as a teacher of excellence. Above all other achievements, Jeffersis most well remembered for laying the foundations for social work and communitydevelopment, both in Trinidad and the wider Caribbean. Many of the traditions,institutions and methodologies developed by Jeffers and her Coterie of Social Workershave continued to last in the 21st Century. The Coterie of Social Workers (COSW)allowed Jeffers to combine her concern with women, her compassion for the lessfortunate and her concern for persons of African descent. In March 1936, she washonoured guest of the Negro Progress Convention, British Guiana to mark the 100thAnniversary of Slave Emancipation. In May, the Coterie hosted the First Conference ofBritish West Indies and British Guiana Women Social Workers in Port of Spain, the firstmajor women's conference of the English-Speaking Caribbean. Recommendationsincluded: the introduction of a girl's scholarship, establishment of a Women's PoliceForce and increased employment for educated Black women. In October, Jeffersbecame the first women elected to the Port of Spain Municipal Council and in 1946 shebecame the first woman nominated to the Legislative Council. She also served ashonorary counsel for the Republic of Liberia. She died in 1968.

1 Emancipation Day (Bahamas, Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St Kitts & Nevis,St Lucia, St Vincent & the Grenadines,Trinidad & Tobago)& Kadooment Day (Barbados)

5 Emancipation/Freedom day/August Monday (Dominica, Grenada) 6 Independence Day (Jamaica)12 International Youth Day31 Independence Day (Trinidad & Tobago)TBA EId-Ul-Fitr (Guyana, Suriname,Trinidad & Tobago)


Elma François born in 1897 was moulded by loss, oppressionand struggle. In her formative years,Elma Constance François grew with eyeswide open in a colonial St. Vincent where racialdiscrimination and a lack of political activismamong working-class blacks were an acceptedreality. In 1919 she migrated to Trinidad whereshe found niche in the budding labour movements of Cipriani and Howard-Bishop.This would not last however, as François saw beyond the exclusivity of socialist-styleleadership of the labour movement and sought to be closer to the workers. She iscredited with promoting a grassroots approach to the mobilization of the working-class. Ever conscious of her African heritage, François was a founding member of theNegro Welfare Cultural and Social Association (NWCSA) that sought theempowerment of black people and particularly black women whose voices werecontinually silenced in the political sphere. Here, François can also be credited forforming the first notable gender-neutral space for political activism, where men andwomen worked jointly against colonial oppression. In 1987, she was posthumouslydeclared a national heroine of Trinidad and Tobago. She died in 1944.

1 Labour Day (Barbados)5 Indian Heritage Day (Guyana)12 Mother's Day23 Labour Day (Jamaica)26 Independence Day (Guyana)30 Indian Arrival Day (Trinidad & Tobago)30 Corpus Christi (Haiti, St Lucia, Grenada,Trinidad & Tobago)


Una Marson,born in 1905, transformed the representationof Jamaican women in poems, plays,journalism and activism. In 1928 Marson'scommitment to advancing women's liberationwas reflected in the journal that she founded;“The Cosmopolitan: A Monthly Magazine forthe Business Youth of Jamaica and theOfficial Organ of The Stenographers.”Marson challenged racism when she edited the League of Coloured Peoples journal;“The Keys”. In 1935 Marson was the first Jamaican to give a lecture at the InternationalAlliance of Women for Suffrage and Equal Citizenship Conference in Istanbul and wasthe first Black woman to attend the League of Nations at Geneva. From 1937 in Jamaica,Una Marson had a column in the People's National Party paper called “PublicOpinion.” During a period when Jamaican beauty contests idealized whiteness,Marson's poetry validated Black women's experiences. Consider 'Kinky Hair Blues'(1937): “I hate dat ironed hair/ And dat bleaching skin/ But I'll be all alone/If I don't fallin...I like me black face/And me kinky hair/But nobody loves dem/I jes don't tink it'sfair.” In 1938 Marson returned to London and did freelance work for the BBC and in1941 was appointed as a full-time assistant for the radio programme “Calling the WestIndies.” In 1945 Marson returned to Jamaica and she worked for the nationalist“Pioneer Press.” She died in 1965.Donnell and Welsh,The Routledge Reader in Caribbean Literature. London: Routledge, 1996;Ford- Smith, ‘Una Marson, ’Caribbean Quarterly 34, 3/4. 1988: 22-37

16 National Heroes Day (St Kitts & Nevis)19 Independence Day (St. Kitts & Nevis)21 Independence Day (Belize)24 Republic Day (Trinidad & Tobago)22-28 (International) Peace Week



Flavia Cherry is an entrepreneur who has spent her lifeworking towards the cause of gender andsocial justice in St. Lucia and also in theCaribbean. Cherry is perhaps best knownfor her role in advocacy and action over thepast twenty years. She is currently theActing Chairperson of the CaribbeanAssociation for Feminist Research andAction (CAFRA) and President of the Civil Society Network in St. Lucia. She is also afounding member of the St. Lucia National Organization for Women and ASPIRE St.Lucia as well as the Caribbean Women's Network on Sexual and Reproductive Health(CARIWONET). Cherry is the host of the television Talk Show “The GenderDimension” which she has used to promote gender equality and social justice. Not oneto shy away from major challenges, she has undertaken many campaigns and activitieswhich have led to varying degrees of change within the society, including law reform onabortion, policy change on water, improved service delivery for children, as well asdemanding full respect for the human rights of vulnerable populations, including sexworkers. She has also worked very closely with women in Haiti through the CAFRANetwork.

Child Abuse Prevention Month 18 Good Friday21 Easter Monday 28 National Heroes' Day (Barbados)


was a renowned author and diplomat and wasdeeply concerned with women's rights and genderequality. As the founding Regional Coordinatorof the Women and Development Studies Project,which paved the way for the establishment of theCentre for Gender and Development Studies(CGDS) at UWI, Mair held equal company with agroup of dynamic women in an era ripe withtransition and development. She was also a founding member of DevelopmentAlternatives with Women for New Era (DAWN). She was a prolific writer, and pioneeredthe documentation and detailed analysis of slave and post-slave society in Jamaica.She was also one of the first scholars to chart the history of women in Jamaica,providing them with their own identity within male-dominated literature. Her pioneeringPhD this “A Historical Study of Women in Jamaica from 1655-1844” was the first PhDon women's history to be awarded at the University of the West Indies, Mona. Beyondacademia, Mair promoted gender-based issues on an international level as Secretary-General for the World Conference of the United Nations Decade for Women in 1980and would go on to serve from 1982-1987 as the Secretary-General to the UNConference on Palestine. She died in 2009.

Lucille Mathurin Mair

Breast Cancer Awareness Month15 International Day of Rural Women21 National Heroes Day (Jamaica)27 Independence Day (St.Vincent & the Grenadines)


born in 1916, was Governor General ofBarbados from 1990 to 1995. Dame Nitaserved at various times as President of theWorld Young Women's ChristianAssociation, the World President of theInternational Council for Adult Education,President of the World Council ofChurches, and Barbados' Ambassador tothe United Nations (1986 to 1990). She was a member of the Commonwealth EminentPersons Mission to South Africa in 1986 and was Convenor of the NGO Forum forWomen at the United Nations World Congress on Women in Nairobi in 1985. In all thesecapacities, Dame Nita championed the causes of justice, equality, peace, and theempowerment of women. Dame Nita was a tower of strength to regional and worldwidemovements which were inspired by her spirit of activism, compassion, brilliance and joy.In honour of the late Dame Nita Barrow, the then Centre for Gender and DevelopmentStudies, Cave Hill Unit, was renamed The Nita Barrow Unit on November 15, 2006.

Women's History Month8 International Women's Day &

United Nations Day for Women's Rights and International Peace9 National Heroes and Benefactors Day (Belize)14 National Heroes Day ( St Vincent & the Grenadines)30 Spiritual Baptist Liberation/ Shouter Baptist Day (Trinidad & Tobago)

Dame Ruth Nita Barrow


Gema Ramkeesoonwas born in Trinidad in 1910 and was active in theChurch and in women's organizations. Mrs.Ramkeesoon was the first local DiocesanPresident of the largest group of Anglican women,the Mothers’ Union; first Chairman of a Women'sPrison Visiting Committee; first Secretary of theDay Nursery Association; past President of theWomen's Corona Society; a member of the Minimum Wages Council, forerunner to theIndustrial Court; and past President of the Soroptomist International, a professionalwomen's organisation. In a delivery to the inaugural seminar in Women andDevelopment Studies in 1986, Gema Ramkeesoon observed: “Today we can enumeratethe tremendous strides our women have made. We know of female senators, ministersof government, judges, lawyers, professors of education…At the beginning of thetwentieth century, we were none of these. Nevertheless, as a social worker myself, I canbe proud of the pioneering contribution we have made. I look now at you educatedwomen, professionally trained, 'financially secure', independently minded, with everypossible profession and opportunity open to you. As you stand at the threshold ofthe twenty-first century, I envy you”.Ramkeesoon, Gema (1988). Early Women’s Organizations in Trinidad: 1920s to 1950s. In PatriciaMohammed and Catherine Shepher d, eds., Gender in Car ibbean Development. Kingston, Jamaica: UWIWomen and Development Studies Project, 353-356.

1 Independence Day (Antigua & Barbuda)3 Independence Day (Dominica)6-8 IGDS 20th Anniversary Conference on Gender Transformations in the Caribbean

(Trinidad & Tobago)15 Caribbean Women: Catalysts for Change Lecture (Barbados)19 International Men's Day & Garifuna Settlement Day (Belize)20 Universal Children's Day25 International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

& Independence Day (Suriname)30 Independence Day (Barbados)TBA Divali (Trinidad & Tobago, Guyana)


6 International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation7 Independence Day (Grenada)10 Chinese New Year (Suriname)12 Sexual and Reproductive Health Awareness Day20 World Day of Social Justice22 Independence Day (St. Lucia)23 Republic Mashramani (Guyana)

Amy Baileyborn in 1895, was open and articulate in herstand against racial discrimination of andamong black people. As one of the first andfew persons to openly critique white-on-black and brown-on-black discrimination,Bailey emerged as an influential intellectearly in the Women's and Anti-Racismmovements in Jamaica. A teacher by training, this Garveyite lobbied for increasedrepresentation of women in politics and better education. She was particularlyconcerned with ensuring that black girls and young women were equipped to riseabove the inherently disadvantageous class system into which they were born. Baileywas the co-founder and president of the Women's Liberal Club (1936), was involved inthe Jamaica Save the Children Fund, the Birth Control League and was a foundationmember of the Jamaica Federation of Women. Among multiple achievements as ateacher and political activist, Bailey was one of the first black women in Jamaica tobecome a Justice of the Peace and received high commendations from Jamaica for herservice to society in the form of the Order of Distinction in 1971. She died in 1990.



Verna St Rose Greaves,a stalwart feminist and political activist of Trinidadand Tobago was appointed a Senator and Ministerof Gender, Youth and Child Development. Ms.Greaves is a social worker by profession, a reveredfeminist, counsellor, social activist and amotivational speaker. Her skills entail GenderStudies, Industrial Relations, Mediation and HumanRights. Ms. Greaves' passion is driven by herdesire for development issues and regional integration and she has participated inseveral programs in pursuance of economic and social development in Trinidad andTobago and the region. Ms. Greaves has worked with government, NGO's and as aprivate consultant. She has done substantial work in the areas of welfare policy,poverty alleviation, family services, gender and development, adoption of children,violence against women and children, crime and violence in the society, HIV-AIDS, andprison reform and has lead the call for the enactment of a National Gender Policy forTrinidad and Tobago. Over the years she has participated in a multitude of trainingworkshops and conferences, and has presented papers locally, regionally andinternationally. Her involvement in the practical training and support of social workstudents of the University of the West Indies informs her ongoing work on thedevelopment of a Forum for Alternative Social Work Education (FASWE).

1 World AIDS Day9 National Heroes Day (Antigua & Barbuda)10 Human Rights Day25 Christmas Day26 Boxing Day


1 New Years Day & Independence Day (Haiti)2 Ancestors Day (Haiti)21 Errol Barrow Day (Barbados)

Dr. Peggy Antrobus’exemplary contribution to women'sempowerment has earned her respect andadmiration both regionally and internationally.She was born in Grenada, acquired citizenshipof St. Vincent and the Grenadines and residesin Barbados. Dr. Antrobus pursued studies inEconomics at the Bristol University in the UKand Social Work at the Birmingham University.Her PhD in Education was obtained from theUniversity of Massachusetts. She was a founding member of the CaribbeanAssociation of Feminist Action and Research (CAFRA), Women's Bureau in Jamaica,the Women and Development Unit in the School of Continuing Studies, UWI, Cave Hill,and Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN) and functioned asits General Coordinator from 1990 to 1996. Dr. Antrobus has served in multiplecapacities including: Chief Community Development Officer for St. Vincent (1969-1970), Director, Women's Bureau, Jamaica (1974-1977), Secretary, CaribbeanCoordinating Committee on Women's Affairs (1977-78), Tutor-Coordinator, Womenand Development Unit (WAND) UWI at Cave Hill (1978-1995). Dr Antrobus was also theinitiator of the process in 1982, which led to the formation of the Women andDevelopment Studies Groups on each UWI Campus, paving the way for theestablishment of the CGDS in 1993. She has also published extensively on issuespertinent to women's development and has served as advisor to various internationalagencies and Caribbean governments.


IGDS Heads of Department and Units

Prof. Verene ShepherdUniversity Director, IGDS,

Regional Coordinator, RegionalCoordinating Unit

Dr. Leith Dunn,Head, Mona Unit

Dr. Piya PangsapaHead,

St. Augustine Unit

Dr. Charmaine CrawfordActing Head,

Nita Barrow Unit

Nita Barrow Unit: From left to right – Mrs Hazel Blackman (Office Assistant); Dr Tonya Haynes (Temp. Lecturer);Dr Charmaine Crawford (Acting Head); Dr Carmen Hutchinson Miller(Research Assistant); Mrs Olivia Birch (Stenographer/Clerk); Dr HalimahDeShong (Temp. Lecturer); Ms Suzanne Archer (Temp. Administrative Assistant)

Mona Unit From left to right: Ms Ingrid Nicely (Senior AdministrativeAssistant); Dr Annecka Marshall (Lecturer); Ms Ann-Marie Virgo,(Receptionist) and Dr Leith Dunn, (Senior Lecturer/Head).

St. Augustine Unit: Front Row L to R: Ms. Kathryn Chan(Contract Officer); Ms. Natasha Richards-Isaac (Clerical Assistant); Ms. SuelanChin-Colai (Clerical Assistant); Dr. Jeanne Roach-Baptiste (AssistantLecturer) Back Row: Ms. Sommer Hunte (Outreach and Research); Dr. Piyasuda Pangsapa (Head of Department/Senior Lecturer); Ms. AvrilPatterson-Pierre (Administrative Assistant); Ms. Anusha Ragbir ( ResearchAssistant); Ms. Tessa Ottley (Documentalist); Dr. Gabrielle Hosein (Lecturer);Ms. Susan Jacelon (Office Attendant).

Regional Coordinating Unit: From left to right – Dr Dalea Bean (Lecturer), Mrs Suzanne Charles-Watson (Junior Research Fellow), Ms Taitu Heron (Lecturer), Mrs Margaret Hunter (Office Attendant), Mrs Shakira Maxwell

(Administrative Officer), Ms Andrea Allen (Secretary). Seated: Professor Verene Shepherd (University Director)

Nita Barrow Unit Mona Unit

St. Augustine Unit Regional Coordinating Unit


Eudine Barriteau Patricia Mohammed Rhoda Reddock

Barbara Bailey Elsa Leo-Rhynie

IGDS ProfessorsEudine Barriteau, BSc (UWI), MPA (NYU), PhD (Howard)Professor of Gender & Public Policy; Head, Institute for Gender and Development Studies, Nita Barrow Unit (August 1, 1993 – Present); On secondment to the Office of the Deputy Principal (August 1, 2008 - Present)

Patricia Mohammed, BA, MSc (UWI), PhD (ISS, The Hague)Professor of Gender & Cultural Studies; Head, Mona Unit, Centre for Gender and Development Studies (1994-2002); Chair, School for Graduate Studies and Research, St. Augustine Campus (2007- 2012)

Rhoda Reddock, BSc (UWI), MSc (The Hague), PhD (University of Amsterdam);Professor of Gender, Social Change and Development; Head, Centre for Gender andDevelopment Studies, St. Augustine Campus Unit (August 1, 1994 to July 2008); Deputy Principal, St. Augustine Campus (2008 - Present)

Professors EmeritaBarbara Bailey, BSc (University of London, UCWI), BSc (UWI), Dip Ed. (UWI), PhD (UWI); Professor of Gender and Education; University Director, IGDS (1995- July 2010)

Elsa Leo-Rhynie, BSc (University of London, UCWI), Dip Ed (UWI), PhD (UWI) Professor of Gender & Development Studies; Regional Coordinator, Project of Cooperation in TeachingResearch and Outreach in Women and Development Studies (1992-1993); Regional Coordinator Centre forGender and Development Studies (May 1993-July 1996)


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