JavaScript is disabled in your web browser or browser is too old to support JavaScript. Today almost all web pages contain JavaScript, a scripting programming language that runs on visitor's web browser. It makes web pages functional for specific purposes and if disabled for some reason, the content or the functionality of the web page can be limited or unavailable.

Monday, July 7, 2025

Falling through the chasm

by

20131207

Six-year-old Keyana Cum­ber­batch was per­verse­ly con­sumed. Like a thor­ough­ly sucked man­go seed she was dis­card­ed, ca­su­al­ly tossed in­to the garbage. Some un­speak­able crea­ture sat­ed his de­mon­ic lust in a man­ner that most of us sim­ply can't process. "How ah man could look at a chile and do some­thing like dat!"

My ca­reer as a re­porter was cursed with a seem­ing­ly in­ter­minable stint on the crime beat, so the bru­tal na­ture of Keyana's mur­der did not res­onate in me with the same force it did the na­tion. One per­sis­tent im­pres­sion left by my years in the killing streets was a com­plete de­sen­si­ti­sa­tion to the hor­ror of vi­o­lence to which I was ex­posed on a week­ly ba­sis.

There came a point though, when the trau­mat­ic im­agery brand­ed on­to my brain had be­come prob­lem­at­ic. I was de­sen­si­tised, but my thoughts weren't sani­tised. It be­came nec­es­sary to think of these vic­tims as less than hu­man, but in so do­ing I was al­so be­com­ing less than hu­man.

While Keyana's mur­der was deeply shock­ing, we have a long his­to­ry of de­vour­ing our chil­dren in some of the most hor­ri­fy­ing ways. Oc­ca­sion­al­ly, fad­ed strands of con­scious­ness trans­port me back to the morn­ing I vis­it­ed the scene of a mur­der/sui­cide in St Joseph. An over­bur­dened fa­ther, buck­ling un­der ei­ther im­pos­si­ble re­spon­si­bil­i­ties or do­mes­tic up­heaval, took the de­fault ex­it path: the mur­der-sui­cide. He drugged his three chil­dren, though ap­par­ent­ly not very ef­fec­tive­ly, and then went at them with a cut­lass.

http://www.guardian.co.tt/dig­i­tal/new-mem­bers


Related articles

Sponsored

Weather

PORT OF SPAIN WEATHER

Sponsored

Today's
Guardian

Publications

The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

The Executive of the National Parang Association 2025-27. Back row, from left: Kervin Preudhomme, assistant secretary; Shaquille Headley, committee member; Cheriese Pierre, committee member; Lisa Lee, trustee; Joanne Briggs, PRO; Yarelis Touissant, committee member; William Calliste, trustee. Front row, from left: Jenais Carter, secretary; Alicia Jaggasar, president; Henrietta Carter, vice president; Joseph Bertrand, youth officer. Missing: Kerrylee Chee Chow, treasurer; Chevone Pierre, committee member.

Jaggasar returns as National Parang president

18 hours ago
Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Charles Town junior drummers and dancers take to the stage

Jamaican Maroons celebrate, question land rights

18 hours ago
Sherron Harford

Sherron Harford

Sherron Harford

Sherron Harford

Sherron Harford’s holistic mission

to transform the lives of girls

Yesterday
Despite finding out just three days earlier—on December 23—that I had breast cancer, I still got dressed and showed up on December 26, Boxing Day, for a birthday party. I didn’t go to escape the truth. I went to remind myself I was still here, still living, still me.

Despite finding out just three days earlier—on December 23—that I had breast cancer, I still got dressed and showed up on December 26, Boxing Day, for a birthday party. I didn’t go to escape the truth. I went to remind myself I was still here, still living, still me.

Despite finding out just three days earlier—on December 23—that I had breast cancer, I still got dressed and showed up on December 26, Boxing Day, for a birthday party. I didn’t go to escape the truth. I went to remind myself I was still here, still living, still me.

Despite finding out just three days earlier—on December 23—that I had breast cancer, I still got dressed and showed up on December 26, Boxing Day, for a birthday party. I didn’t go to escape the truth. I went to remind myself I was still here, still living, still me.

Nicole Drayton’s breast cancer journey–Fear, faith, and fighting back

Yesterday