The Tribune

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

WHILE many believe that gender equality has been achieved and fully established in the Bahamas, there are young empowered women who know the fight for women’s rights is far from over.

Aisha Sherman, founder of Viva La Bella and Patricia Chatti of Cia Monet are two young activists who gain inspiration from the Bahamian suffragettes.

“These were women who offered their lives to fighting for the fundamental rights of women in the Bahamas, when might I add, they did not have to. However their courage and determination has changed the mold for women in the Bahamas forever,” said Aisha, whose women’s empowerment and fashion summit has created opportunities for Bahamian women to develop.

She believes the challenges women face today can be solutions of tomorrow, if people continue to address the issues that women face. She uses the platform of Viva La Bella to host private and public events geared towards empowering women professionally, as well as assisting with building self acceptance and self love, which is the foundation on which a healthy lifestyle is built.

“I also use social media as an extension for reaching out to women and discussing and bringing awareness to various issues, and in the very near future I will also be creating a media platform that focuses on promoting healthy lifestyles amongst our women, not neglecting the needs of our men as well,” said Aisha.

“The Suffrage movement then was about bringing into existence some fundamental rights for women like the right to vote, the right to hold high ranking positions in government, to be included in local government, on the jury, and the list goes on. Today the issues of women have evolved, and the dynamics have changed significantly. We have achieved a great deal, yet the struggle continues as we face new challenges,” she said.

Pointing to the fact that the number of households managed by a single working mothers has drastically increased over the years, Aisha said the changing family dynamics raises many issues that need to be addressed. Aisha said she hopes to see restoration in the life of families.

“I am excited to be apart of a movement that focuses on rebuilding the values that women like Mable Walker, Mary Ingraham, Dame Doris Johnson and others held with such high esteem. My mantra continues to be, you empower a woman, you empower a nation,” said Aisha.

Patricia Chatti said her introduction to the women’s suffrage movement came late in her life. In fact, just this year, a chronology of the movement published in the telephone directory to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary caught her eye.

The information sparked her to research further, and in the end she decided to bring people together to create awareness for the cause. Beauties at Brunch was a four part series she hosted this year to recognise leading women across the country and pay respect to the suffragettes.

Patricia said if Mable Walker and Dame Doris Johnson were able to overcome major odds and obstacles over 50 years ago, women can do the same today.

“While we don’t have the same issues now, we are affected with the same feelings of not being accepted, being overlooked and feeling under-appreciated,” said Patricia.

“Today there is so much separating us, be it religious, political, social or economic classes, we have found so many reasons to lose focus from the core. The push has become weakened and watered down and because of this we can’t get focused on the more pressing and important general issues of women of the Bahamas and the world,” she said.

Patricia hopes her work as a woman’s activist can help women of the Bahamas to “move collectively in one direction” in the spirit of the women’s suffrage movement.