Women, raise your flambeaux for freedom, peace

Dara E Healy

Jouvé baré yo

Pa lévé lamen asou yo

…Jump in the line and smack yuh lips

Roll yuh eyes, hold yuh head

And shake yuh hips

Jouvé baré yo

Pa lévé lamen asou yo

– Jouvé, Baré Yo, Roaring Lion

AS I WAS heading out for Jouvay (J’Ouvert) I picked up a bois. It felt right. The bois was an extension of what I wanted to express as we prepared to welcome the spirit of Carnival. We stopped at the crossroads, thanking the ancestors for their bravery and sacrifice so we can enjoy our festival.

Then, the mysticism was temporarily shattered when a burly, aggressive policeman informed us that our flambeaux were not allowed because no bottles are allowed in Carnival. We were stunned. But this is not just a bottle, this is flambeaux, one of our oldest traditions. Naturally, he threatened to arrest us. I held on to my bois and headed towards the rhythm section.

What is the connection between my Jouvay encounter and today’s commemoration of International Women’s Day (IWD)? It has been 30 years since the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a ground-breaking agreement on women’s rights between 189 countries and over 30,000 activists.

However, the UN points out that the world is still “deeply unequal.” Women continue to be marginalised in a number of areas, while culture and the arts are still not fully included in finding solutions to many of our challenges.

The confrontation on Jouvay morning is a perfect example of the ongoing disconnect between the law, law enforcement agencies and our culture. There were women in our group who had planned to breathe fire. They had taken the time to make the flambeaux themselves, an ancient ritual in its own right. On this day, the breathing of fire would have been a ritual of remembering when Africans roamed the streets, carrying torches in celebration of their freedom.

As I walked away from the police, I understood why I picked up the bois. It was about channelling the energy of the jamettes and stickfighters who had fought for our Carnival decades ago. I wanted to feel connected to them in some way, to the euphoria of experiencing freedom.

In that time, kalinda (stickfighting) was a unifying, empowering force. It embodied the movement and technique of a traditional African martial art form, the dance as well the defiance of the chants. “Who in the road clear out the way/White man go way, s’il vous plait (please).”

Beijing 1995 was a euphoric time, filled with the promise of global change for women and girls. Yet, in 2025, International Women’s Day finds us needing and demanding more. According to the UN, “nine million girls are at risk of being married as children by 2030.”

In our own region, there are reports that women and girls in Haiti are increasingly at risk of sexual violence as a result of having to survive in a conflict zone. At home, we are confronted by intimate partner violence, human trafficking, sexual grooming of children and more.

The UN is asking us through the IWD theme this year to Accelerate Action. As we struggle to manage our levels of social violence in general, women must be included as key contributors to peace and conflict resolution.

First, through kalinda self-defence training, women can begin to address fear and lack of self-confidence. They can empower themselves to better assess situations and reclaim their power. Apart from kalinda movement and techniques, incorporating wider Carnival arts skills into work programmes would help equip women to be more solution-driven.

Women should also play a more meaningful role in peace-building efforts, for instance in vulnerable communities. Data shows that their presence often improves the possibility of longer-lasting success in such negotiations. There must also be more consistent and structured support for civil society organisations, which are often led and driven by women.

The colours of Jouvay swirled in the water on the shower tiles. Blue, pink, green and grey mud. I thought about the confrontation that morning. I could not wash away my disappointment that so many aspects of our culture are treated like an “arrestable offence.”

On this International Women’s Day, let us remember that women were always at the forefront of defending our culture and protecting our communities. We must be allowed to raise our flambeaux for freedom and for peace. We must.

Dara E Healy is a performing artist and founder of the Idakeda Group, a cultural organisation dedicated to empowering communities through the arts

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