Every day I am out of my house I have to deal with vile creepy men (VCM). (I am thus very much of a hermit) However, this is my neighbourhood, my life, my islands. I’ve never grown used to it.It has formed the way I deal with males, and is deeply connected to the experience of being a Caribbean female.
In Grenada I’ve had the opportunity to experience a slightly different culture to Trinidad’s in the realm of the VCM. Now there are those who will make a comment, but they usually attempt to be charming (absolutely failing), or they hide in the corner and shoo shoo among their friends. The Grenadians tend to be a touch less bold, less racist, and try to be charming (sigh. no. just. no).
As you might guess, the VCM tends to appear out of nowhere, when you least expect it. They are everywhere. Their eyes are everywhere. Especially in small villages, it’s more pronounced. Now I must make the distinction between pure small village “maco” behaviour and the VCM. They are connected socio-culturally, but I won’t get into that.
This is simply my experience on the street. Every. Bloody. Day.
I stand at the side of the road, the bus terminal, anywhere, and I see them driving along, walking, heads turning, eyes moving. Gross gross gross gross. SPIT. HISS. Excuse me while I vomit a little with a smile on my face. They tend to get aggressive when you do not respond and I’m not really up for that drama. Unfortunately my face does not lie and they pick up my revulsion. Oops.
I am sorry men. I know some of you are not VCMs, and I know many very charming wonderful humans and these idiots put you to shame. Oh well.
Tracey Chan is a Trinidadian multimedia visual artist living in Grenada. She is Co-Curator of WOMA “Women Make Art” – an exhibition featuring exclusively women artists, organized in commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of International Women’s Day. Learn more about Tracey on her website at http://www.traceychan.com/