Children walking aimlessly on the streets when they should be in school reflects a failed society. Children being left unsupervised because their parents or guardians must work exposes the harsh realities of a cruel society. Children longing to return to the classrooms, missing their teachers, confused, and wondering why they are being left behind intensifies the trauma they already experience living in a country like Guyana.
Many Guyanese children endure what children should never experience. Many are abused or suffer because of choices made by their parents. Many are going hungry because of poverty or are neglected because their entry into this world was not planned. There are too many ways by which many Guyanese children are unloved.
Allowing a teachers’ strike to continue for months proves that the dreams of the children affected are not important to those who sit in positions of power. We must question if what they want is a largely illiterate society. After all, an illiterate population is easier to deceive and manipulate. Those in positions of power seem sure that they would not be punished by the disgruntled, marginalised, victimised, detested, and forgotten so they continue to push and punish a nation. They are not wolves in sheep clothing. They have long revealed themselves as wolves and the sheep walk around calmly hoping not to be eaten.
