“I am not a sex object”: Female entrepreneur speaks out
A female entrepreneur from Sierra Leone, Vickie Remoe has shared her story of how she continues to suffer sexual harassment in the hands of some men.
Remoe is one of the leading female voices in Sierra Leone who speaks against cultural practices subjecting women to ridicule in her country.
Besides building a vibrant communication business, Remoe also makes it her duty to take on politicians in Sierra Leone for failing to deliver.
In a blog post, Remoe said on several occasions, some men she encountered engage in sexism behaviours towards her.
She wrote for instance that “a male acquaintance called me. He told me he had a business deal to discuss with me. He came and we spoke about the deal which had to do with liquidating assets for a client. He is a lawyer.
Somewhere in the middle of that conversation he said that thing (pointing in the direction of my crotch) it must have been a long time since someone hit that.
He said it was unfair. That he was waiting for the day that I would call him and ask him to come have sex with me.”
Just a sex object?
Remoe said “In his eyes, I am but an object for sex. I didn’t tell him the extent to which that talk repulsed me but it did.”
The outspoken business woman also shared another instance where she met another man for a business conversation.
“Then he got up to get a drink. This man whose name I had only just learned who is 20 years my senior put his hand on my thigh and squeezed it as he got up. We were at a small dinner party at a table where we had just eaten,” Remoe said.
Remoe further wrote “I suffer and smile and compensate by trying to prove that I’m not a sex object by continuing in conversations right after a man has crossed the line.”
She is hoping her story will encourage others who suffer such sexual harassment moments to speak out.
Remoe concludes that “If any man is sexist in word or deed I am going to speak up.
Enough is enough. And if you’re a woman in Sierra Leone reading this I hope you feel the courage to do the same. #TimeIsUp.”
In many African societies many women and in some instances men who suffer sexual harassment and abuses rarely speak out.
Such persons are now speaking out hoping for a change.
Source: Africafeeds.com
