On December 3rd, 2022, the Soroptimist International of Jamestown with sponsorship from the Canadian Government funded Improved Access to Justice in the Caribbean (IMPACT Justice) Project hosted a T-Shirt Art Competition for 16 young girls selected from the Haynesville Community Group, Weston Community Group, Brownies, The Girl Guides and The Caciques Club at the Frederick Smith Secondary School.
The competition, which was held on the grounds of The Church of Jesus the Good Shepherd Anglican Church, Fitts Village in St. James, was one of the activities planned by the Soroptimist International of Jamestown to commemorate the United Nations 16 Days of Activism to End Gender-Based Violence. The theme for the day’s proceedings was “Unite Against Violence” and the 16 contestants, under the watchful eye of parents, Soroptimist members, teachers and the IMPACT Justice team, were all provided with t-shirts, sketching paper, paints, brushes and glitter to create their own creative expressions of messages against violence targeted towards women and girls. After three hours of drawing and an hour of deliberation by the judges, the following were announced as the winners in the 3 participating age categories.
Under 9
First: Abygail Burnett
Second: Mya Holder
Third: Haidyn Haynes
Under 12
First: Jazzaria Reece
Second: Willeah King
Third: Taresha Hinds Mitchel
Under 21 (only 2 contestants)
First: Akelyah Williams
Second: Marissa Forde
Professor Velma Newton, CBE, SCM, Regional Project Director of the IMPACT Justice Project was on hand for the first half of the proceedings and was very impressed by the art work created by the students and their understanding of the messaging. Regrettably, due to a competing engagement Professor Newton was unable to participate in the prize giving ceremony, but Project Officers, Charleen Walkes and Theo Franklyn presented the prizes to the talented contestants on her behalf.
This initiative is the second activity being supported by IMPACT Justice this year in commemoration of the United Nation’s 16 Days of Activism to End Gender-Based Violence. The first activity was held on November 25th also in partnership with the Soroptimist International of Jamestown and the Bureau of Gender Affairs and entailed the distribution of literature and purple teardrop ribbons to raise awareness to the issue of Human Trafficking. This activity was held in Sky Mall.
