Marriage is no cure-all, Lipton Matthews

THE EDITOR, Sir:

Times have changed, and it's full time some of the writers who frequent local newspapers recognise this. In one day, four outdated perspectives descended on local newspapers like carrion crows to a fresh carcass.

In response to the rightly deserved criticism, Lipton Matthews sought to use dated research to treat Krystal Tomlinson as another single mother who will cause harm to Jamaican society.

Krystal is a woman in a seemingly stable relationship, not a single mother. Additionally, marriage doesn't prevent anyone from becoming a single mother since divorce rates continue to climb in Jamaica. Marriage is not the cure-all for society's problems, healthy relationships are.

The Status of Children Act was passed in the 1970s, and yet, Matthews continues to perpetuate the idea of 'illegitimate' children and unwed pregnant women being less worthy. Jamaica has outgrown this as a dominant ideology.

Non-starter arguments

Some of his contemporaries have sought to join him in arguing for the anachronistic. One Mr Gray has argued that standards of decency mean thatunderwear and washrags should not be hung together, despite the likelihood of the former being the cleaner.

One Mr McKoy has suggested that LGBT persons of faith should only be welcome in the Church on condition of them wanting to be 'converted' to heterosexuality.

A person called Chin has suggested that Floyd Grindley's age has something to do with his mismanagement of Petrojam.

Note, however, that scandals have followed political leaders in this country who were much older, such as Fenton Ferguson (dead babies), Omar Davies (FINSAC), Portia Simpson Miller (Trafigura), Andrew Wheatley (Petrojam), Bruce Golding (Manatt), etc.

I use this opportunity to encourage other writers who do not share these ageist, sexist, homophobic or just simply outdated perspectives to write more so that traditional media is reflective of the progressive nature of the Jamaica that we now live in.

GLENROY MURRAY

Associate Director,

Programmes and Advocacy

Equality for All Foundation

Jamaica Ltd