A Children’s Advocate, Getting the Job Done -Diahann Gordon Harrison

A CHILDREN’S ADVOCATE, GETTING THE JOB DONE Diahann Gordon Harrison

CHILDREN’S ADVOCATE FOR THE COUNTRY OF JAMAICA. Mrs. Gordon Harrison is doing remarkable work to protect the Children of Jamaica. On the surface, Gordon Harrison who is also an attorney, is so unassuming and softspoken. But she is talented, dedicated, and determined to help children.

Gordon Harrison put together the Child Justice Guidelines Training Seminar for the JCF and JP(s). A conference for top police brass and commanders in Jamaica, and for Justice’s of the Peace who deal with Children.

“So we were seeing at office, a lot of children who were re-traumatized by the system. These were children who were already broken because they had very negative experiences. Many times, they had relatives or people who they knew and trusted, and so psychologically they were already broken and impaired. When you have a child who is so broken that gets up the courage to make a report and go through the process, hoping for justice in the system, but the system because how it is structured, re-traumatized that child and makes the process of recovery, that much more difficult, we say something is inherently wrong with that, and as an office that has the responsibility to really safeguard children and to protect rights, we had to step in and do something...to standardized systems, have minimum standards...� -

- Diahann Gordon Harrison

HELP OFFICIALS KNOW WHAT TO DO “We have guidelines that tell prosecutors what to do. If you have a child victim for example, have that court orientation. You can’t be meeting the child, the first time when your going to cross examine or have that child in court.” -Diahann Gordon Harrison

An author, Julie Mansfield was one of the keynotes at the conference.

She empowers other victims with her book, “Maybe God was Busy.” Ms. Mansfield was repeatedly sexually abused starting at age 8, and describes herself as an easy target where sex became a commodity and was transactional.

“Easy target because once sexual abuse happens, it lowers your self esteem, it lowers your self worth, your value, all that stuff. Your judgement goes out the window, and so sex was a commodity if you will. It was transactional and there were periods of time where I thought I was only good for sex. I was put on this earth for pleasure of others. Not even for my own self….for the pleasure of others.” -Julie Mansfield

“Sexual Abuse is a life sentence, cause it stays with you for the rest of your life! It doesn’t have to be a death sentence. It doesn’t have to be life in prison. You can overcome. I spent years and years, and years in therapy, and I’m still in therapy, cause I don’t think it’s something that ever stops.

I think healing is a journey. It’s not a destination. It’s a journey, and so I’m on my journey of healing and will be for the rest of my life. Will be for the rest of my life! But I had to seek help.

It’s not your fault. It is NOT your fault! and it’s never to late to seek help. Gotta get help!" - Julie Mansfield

Journalist Dominic Carter was also a victim of Childhood Sexual Abuse, and speaks about it all over the world. His life was profiled in an Oprah Winfrey Magazine article titled: Sexually Abused Men: Is your husband one of them.

Just days after the Jamaica Conference, Dominic Carter was back at it again tackling universal world-wide issues. In midtown, New York Dominic Carter was the emcee for the “Face to Face” gathering, which teaches people how to garden. A very important issues as they gain knowledge they need to grow enough food to eat, earn income, improve nutrition, and lead healthy lives. Face to Face works with 7 tribal chief districts in Malawi.

To read the full article and their powerful journeys, go to Medium.com/@DominicCarterTV