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Male Marginalization in the Caribbean

Joalann Lesley

ID Number: 20161903

Course Code: Soc101

Lecturer: Georgia Crawford

University of the Commonwealth Caribbean

April 9, 2017

Access the view that male marginalization has been accruing in the Caribbean, over the last

twenty years. In your response make reference to culture, family and the education systems

contribution to this phenomenon.

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Male Marginalization in the Caribbean

Where ever you find a great man you will find a great mother or a great wife standing

behind him- or so they use to say. It would be interesting to know how many great

women have had great fathers and husbands behind them (Dorothy L. Sayers).

To marginalize according to Merriam Webster dictionary means to relocate to an

unimportant or powerless position within a society or group. The first known use of the word

marginalize was in 1968 in an article in the Los Angles Time that reported The Negroes was

kept aside marginalized, thus composing majority the chronically poor. (Wbster, n.d.)

The word is still used in 2017 to describe the black male. The marginalization of the Caribbean

male over the past twenty years is evident in the practices in the Caribbean culture, the family

unit and the education system.

The Caribbean being a society built on strong foundations of colonialism face various issues

in the society, one such issue is the marginalization of males. For centuries women have been

considered the inferior sex and were more likely to suffer abuse, oppression and denied

opportunities. The radical feminist would say, women were being exploited for the benefit of

men. As a result it became the mission of many, both men and women, to save the female

gender from further inequality. With so much focus on saving women and girls over time men
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Male Marginalization in the Caribbean
and boys were forgotten; unnoticeably fading in the rising of female power, becoming the

inferior gender. Women have been liberated and have access to the same opportunities as

men. Some may argue women now have far more opportunity than men, women are

dominating in most if not all areas of society. There are a number of womens rights groups

and legislation strengthening the empowerment of the female. With the overwhelming support

and empowerment of women and girls, it is argued that males are being left behind in the

society. Men are often pushed to the side lines as women aim to be the dominant sex. Men are

often denied the same educational opportunities as females, whether it be through the

disinterest of the family to encourage the educating of boys or the bias towards females in the

education system. Men are not given enough avenues to elevate themselves and reach their

true potential and keep their place in society as leaders and providers. Males are often treated

more harshly in the family than their female relatives. Numerous academia such as Miller,

Chavannes and other university professors has explored the issue of male marginalization in

the Caribbean. Arguments have been put forward to agree and disagree with this

phenomenon.

According to Ralph Linton the culture of a society is a way of life of its members, the

collection of ideas and habits which they learn share and pass down from generation to

generation (Haralambos, 2004). The Caribbean society was said to be a patriarchal society

however, somewhere along the line things have changed. The Caribbean men are facing the

issues of gender identity, rise in feminism and the decline of positive male role models. Men

are been emasculated and pushed aside to the unimportant positions in society. In earlier times

men were expected to be hunters, providers, protectors; they were expected to be strong and
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Male Marginalization in the Caribbean
masculine at all times. Men were a symbol of authority, women would submit and serve them.

With the empowerment of women and them dominating the workforce, and holding done the

important positions in society men are no longer playing the significant roles in society: men

are not being looked at to be the providers, women have become very liberal and are able to

take care of themselves and their families. Feminization is responsible in some way for the

marginalization of the Caribbean male, the over whelming feminism in all areas of society has

contributed to the identity crisis the Caribbean male now faces. The radical feminist would

say, women need to get rid of men and live in all female commune and send for the men

when they are needed. Though such drastic measures has not been taken it is quite clear that

women are able to cope and excel, freeing themselves from dependence on men. One example

of a powerful Caribbean woman is Rita Humphries Lewin who was able to become the first

female stock broker in Jamaica and the Caribbean (gleaner, 2017). This is an area that was

male dominated, since then many women has broken similar barriers. Portia Simpson Miller

another example of how powerful women are today. Portia Simpson Miller becoming the first

female president of the PNP and first female prime minister in Jamaica and has set a regional

trend in the Caribbean. Once again pushing men a little further down on the ladder of

authority in the Caribbean society. The Caribbean culture highly influenced by music.

Dancehall which is very popular in the region promotes a culture of name brand cloths and

shoes, flashy cars, jewelry, big houses, sex and violence. With very few male role models for

the young youths, these artist become idols for young boys; a quick way to get rich without

working hard. This kind of influence leads to an overwhelming crime rate in the region as

young men seek to acquire the bling portrait by these artist resulting in major crimes, such as

murders and robbery being committed mainly by youths. Politics too have contributed to the
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Male Marginalization in the Caribbean
down fall of the youths to crime and violence. Disputes in gangs over territory and leadership

or political preference leaves the underachieved or underprivileged youth dead or imprisoned

(Chevannes, 1999).

Further marginalization of the Caribbean male is done through the education system.

The Functionalist Emil Derkiem theorizes that the major function of education is the

transmission of societys norms and values. Education prepares children for adulthood and

provide the necessary training, skills and knowledge to effectively participate in the labor

force. This transmission of knowledge is unfairly issued to the disadvantage of the boys. The

schools in the Caribbean are dominated by female teachers, who unintentionally impart

lessons in ways that are easy for girls to relate and difficult for the boys to understand.

Experts have said the way in which boys learn is different from the way girls learn, therefore

it is unfair to place boys in the same class rooms with girls headed by female teachers, this not

only disadvantage the way of learning but also teenage boys are easily, distracted and an

attractive teacher can sway a young boys mind from the lesson being taught. Research has

shown that more females graduate from university than males, hence unemployment for male

will increase leaving them with less power and respectable positions in society. Over the last

ten years the graduating class of the University of the West Indies ratio is 70:30 in favor of

girls (Figueroa, 2007) . Boys in the Caribbean are not socialized to pursue education, they are

taught to fulfil their masculine obligations they are told to stay outside and do manly chores

while girls get to stay inside and study or read a book; because boys are given more freedom

to run about freely they become less interested in education and more likely to fall under the

influence of peer pressure at school. Boys often place themselves at risk to prove their

masculinity. If a boy at school chooses a feminine subject like food and nutrition he is
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ridiculed and teased but if a girl chooses a masculine subject like carpentry she is encouraged

and helped. In a study by Raymond S. Hackett entitled Education in the Caribbean he found

that male underachievement in education spread right across the Caribbean for similar

reasons, in Grenada for example its the dominance of the female household, too many female

teachers and the perception that the financial rewards for teaching does not make a man feel

like a man. He also noted that in Jamaica schools were not provided with the necessary

resources for teachers to respond effectively to the needs of the students, in particular boys

who are the minority in the class rooms and are underperforming (Hackett). It is clear that

education in the individual Caribbean countries are not significantly different however the

countries are not responding convincingly to the issues facing the failing youths in the

education system. For example not much is being done to address the teaching methods that

are strongly geared to capturing the attention of female students, while the boys are left

confused.

Another contributing factor to the continuous marginalization of the Caribbean male is

the family. The family according to Talcott parsons provides the primary socialization needed

to stabilize the adult personality. He says socialization within the family is very important

because it is within the family that your identity is formed. Primary socialization is important

because majority of people will grow up to be their parents, therefore who you are is

determined by the household you grow up in (Haralambos, 2004). Social pathologist who

conducted their studies in the Caribbean found that most Caribbean families are matrifocal.

This is a result of men not sticking around to help with the upbringing of their children. This

kind of behavior can be traced back to slavery, where polygamy was the order of the day;

families were actively broken apart on the plantations leaving the children with their mothers.
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This practice did not stop with the abolition of slavery. If the primary socialization of our

boys is left solely to the female then surely they will be at a disadvange. Society has a

perception of the roles of boys and girls. Boys are socialized to rough and tough, to stay

outside, to be hustlers and make money. Girls are taught to be sweet and gentle to stay inside

and be princesses and read their books. In a family where the resources do not allow for all

the children to attend school girls are given the advantage over the boys. The boys are more

likely to be deprived and kept out of school. In his studies Barry Chavannes met an inner city

boy who quoted to him school a girl stuff. This declaration of an eight year old boy reveals

the association of meaning built in the minds of many boys. He was actually very quiet proud

of the fact that his absence from school allowed his sister to be present (Chevannes, 1999).

The gender bias socialization in the family is the reason behind this kind of thinking.

According Chavannes a man minds and a woman cares The man minds his children by

protecting them and the woman cares by serving. As children girls are given dolls and kitchen

sets while boys are given trucks and water guns. In the family unit men are often pushed to

the sidelines or forced to be by standers as the women take leadership role in the house, taking

abundant care of tasks required to effectively operate a functional family; paying bills, caring

for children , laundry, organizing schedules or preparing meals, shopping etc. The family is

content with the man just bringing home the pay check, but that is not the true nature of the

man. Men are natural doers and like to be in control however within the family mans natural

instincts are defied as couples slip into an all too familiar notion of perceived gender roles.

Are Caribbean men being marginalized? Are they being stripped of their power and

masculine roles in society or is it just that women are working extremely hard to maintain the

equality they fought so long and hard for, are men being pushed aside by women or are
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women just finally catching up and standing side by side them. Some will argue there is little

to no marginalization of the Caribbean male. In most family settings whether it be: nuclear,

common law or visiting the man is the authoritarian, he is responsible for discipline and the

making of major decisions in the unit. The education system is largely blamed for

marginalization of males, this theory is disputed in an article by k. Coomarsingh, where based

on her research she points out that most characters in text books (over 70 %) were males.

More males than females had occupations in these text books with more males in executive

and managerial positions. These text books present men as more intelligent and inventive than

women and should take the lead in societies (Coomarsingh, 2012). Coomarsingh also points

out that despite the fact that there are more females in schools than males in most Caribbean

schools the top management positions for example (principal) is usually occupied by males. It

is clear that males still dominate the work force holding down the top positions and earning

far more than their female colleagues. There are many successful men that young boys can

emulate as role models. For example Usain Bolt a humble country boy beating the odds to be

one of most successful athlete of his time and a successful business man. Of the 55 years of

independence in Jamaica only one female prime mister, that should not signify male

marginalization. The current prime mister is of course a man, and it is so across the Caribbean

region. Barry Chavannes in his studies found reasons that would disagree with the argument

of male marginalization. In his studies he argued, despite the fact that there may be more

females than males in the university of the West Indies it is the men who are elected to the

seats of power. As for unemployed males there are proportionately more unemployed females

than males, the difference is unemployed females do not hang out on the street corners and the

village square nor do unemployed males hang around the yard trying to find something to do.
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Male Marginalization in the Caribbean
To solve the issues of the Caribbean the focus should not be on the marginalization of one

gender or the other. The focus should be on the institutions such as the schools, church, health

care and the family so they benefit each person regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or social

background. Then we can have a progressive society where all people will be given equal

opportunities.
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Chevannes, B. (1999). www.gracekennedy.com. Retrieved from www.gracekennedy.com:

http://www.gracekennedy.com/images/lecture/GKF1999Lecture.pdf

Coomarsingh, K. (2012, january 21). what is psychlogy. Retrieved from

www.whatispsychology.com: http://www.whatispsychology.biz/gender-inequality-in-

caribbean

Figueroa, M. (2007). Retrieved from www. cedol.org: http://www.cedol.org/wp-

content/uploads/2012/02/23-25-2007.pdf

gleaner, T. (2017, April 7). The gleaner. Retrieved from Jamaicca gleaner .com: http://jamaica-

gleaner.com/gleaner/20140407/flair/flair86.html

Hackett, R. S. (n.d.). Retrieved from uwispace.sta.uwi.edu:

http://uwispace.sta.uwi.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2139/8864/Raymond%20Hackett11.

pdf?sequence=1

Haralambos, M. H. (2004). Haralambos and Holborn Sociology themes and perspectives. In M.

H. Haralambos, Haralambos,Martin H, Heald (p. viii). London: Hapercollins publishers .

Wbster, m. (n.d.). merriam webster. Retrieved from www.merriam webster.cm:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/marginalize
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