For Dr Sue Ann Barratt, understanding gendered conflict has always begun with a deceptively simple question: how do our beliefs about gender shape the way we treat each other? A communications professional turned academic, Barratt is at present a Lecturer and the Head of the Institute for Gender and Development Studies, The University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus. As the world observes International Women’s Day in 2026 under the theme “Give to Gain,” Barratt, who has spent more than two decades examining expectations around femininity, masculinity, and sexuality, offers a powerful reminder that meaningful change begins with challenging the assumptions that structure our relationships and are often foundational elements of culture.
Barratt was born and raised in Santa Cruz and attended Belmont Junior Secondary and Corpus Christi College before earning her degree in Communication, Political Science and International Relations at the University of the West Indies’ Mona campus. In 2006, she joined the Institute for Gender and Development Studies (IGDS), beginning what would become a long and evolving relationship with the Institute—first as a student and assistant, later as a lecturer and researcher. Her doctoral thesis, completed in 2014, focused on understanding perceptions of gender and how they influence human conflict, building a foundation for much of her subsequent scholarship.
Studying gender and the conflictual nature of relationships started long before her entry into formal academia. She recalls that while still pursuing her first degree, she witnessed troubling dynamics among young couples, forms of conflict and gender-based violence that she had come to expect among older people but not among youth. Those experiences raised uncomfortable questions. How were young people already reproducing these patterns of control and harm? What ideas about gender had they internalised so early in life? Examining those questions ignited a curiosity that would ultimately define her career.
At the time, Barratt had not yet been exposed to formal feminist scholarship. Yet she recognised, even then, that something deeper was shaping the ways young people related to each other. As a communications major, her initial instinct was to explore the issue through communication and perception, and she began to study the way that individuals interpret gender roles, how expectations are communicated within relationships, and how those expectations can escalate into conflict. That early curiosity followed her through her academic pathway, from undergraduate studies to a masters degree and eventually a doctoral programme.
Barratt’s research challenges the common assumption that violence in relationships is surface-level and that it simply stems from anger or loss of control. Instead, Barratt argues that conflict is often rooted in deeply embedded expectations—whether from a cultural framework, faith-based teaching or other—about what men and women should be. Families, communities, and cultural narratives frame those expectations long before individuals enter relationships. When those expectations are unmet, when a partner behaves outside what is considered “proper” masculinity or femininity, the result can therefore be tension, conflict, and sometimes violence.
These beliefs, she notes, are often reinforced by morality, religion, and tradition, making them particularly difficult to question. “For me, this line of study started a quest,” she says.
“Everything about femininity is called into question, every day, and it takes the form of criticism, complaint, moral panic, or violence. My goal is for people to understand women as whole people.”
That focus on human value lies at the centre of her academic work. Barratt’s career has been dedicated to exploring the cultural and interpersonal dynamics that shape how women are recognised, or denied recognition, as fully human. “We cannot communicate successfully if we perceive someone as less than,” she explains. For her, gender justice is not an abstract political goal but a prerequisite for meaningful human interaction. As long as women are seen as inferior, communication itself becomes distorted.
A life of service
Barratt’s leadership at IGDS is a reflection of her tireless pursuit of that goal and advocacy for women. Barratt became head of the institute in 2021 at the age of 42, after years of contributing to the department in various roles. She describes the position less as a hierarchical title and more as a greater collective responsibility. “Headship isn’t a position, it’s a call to serve the community,” she says. As she approaches the end of her term, she reflects on the opportunity as one of service: a chance to support a community committed to understanding gender and building more equitable societies.
While Barratt herself describes her personality as introverted, her work regularly intersects with contentious public debates. Conversations about ethnicity, gender and sexuality often provoke strong reactions, particularly when they challenge longstanding cultural norms. Even seemingly straightforward suggestions, such as encouraging the inclusion of consent narratives in soca music, have sparked pushback. Still, she notes that backlash is not unusual in feminist work. When research challenges belief systems grounded in religion, tradition, or moral authority, resistance is inevitable.
The broader movement for gender justice in T&T operates within a space that has various sides. Barratt points out that the country has made meaningful gains: legislation, policy frameworks, active civil society organisations, and a growing body of scholarship. Yet many of the underlying belief systems that reproduce inequality remain deeply rooted in religious and traditional practices. Social media further complicates the landscape.
While it offers powerful platforms for expression and dialogue, it also amplifies misinformation, harassment, and symbolic violence, making it both a tool for progress and a site of new challenges.
Outside academia, Barratt’s life reflects the same commitment to duality, expression and cultural understanding. A Trini to the bone, she describes herself as a “Carnival baby at heart.” Her love for the festival is not only personal but intellectual. She is currently co-authoring a book on Carnival titled Free Up Yourself, exploring the transgressive freedom the festival allows participants to inhabit. For Barratt, Carnival represents a rare social space where individuals can temporarily step outside rigid expectations of gender and identity, an embodied form of communication that resonates deeply with her research.
As the world marks International Women’s Day 2026, Barratt’s message is both simple and radical. Women and girls, she insists, “must claim their right to exist fully, as complex human beings whose identities cannot be reduced to narrow expectations.” At the same time, she cautions that intersectionality must be recognised in women’s experiences. “It is important, even as a woman or an ally, not to assume that all women share the same experiences. Recognise that we live in difference and account for that variability. Differences in privilege, vulnerability, race, and class shape how gender inequality is lived.” Acknowledgement of those differences is essential to building genuine solidarity.
Her advice is direct: never apologise for claiming your womanhood. “Your right to exist fully does not mean someone else loses theirs,” she says.
For Dr Sue Ann Barratt, the work of gender justice ultimately comes down to this principle, ensuring that every person, regardless of gender, is recognised as whole. It is a pursuit she intends to continue for as long as she can, challenging assumptions, deepening understanding, and opening space for more honest conversations about who we are and how we live together.
