By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMAS Crisis Centre director Dr Sandra Dean-Patterson has warned about the dangers young girls face when talking to strangers online, noting that some come from broken homes or unhappy environments, making them more vulnerable to predators.

Dr Patterson said officials are highly concerned about the internet’s impact, explaining that girls who are fragile mentally, emotionally, or physically may struggle to recognise when someone online has bad intentions. Internet safety was one of the key topics at the Crisis Centre’s event yesterday.

The event, held at the Paul Farquharson Headquarters, marked the International Day of the Girl Child. It covered topics including survival skills, understanding emotions, consent, and health. About 15 schools participated, including special needs, private, and public institutions. The event, attended exclusively by female students, provided junior high participants with crucial information to guide them as they grow into womanhood.

“Women are having a hard time being women and the girls need to be able to understand what’s ahead of them and to have the tools and the survival skills to manage the world that is confronting them,” Dr Patterson said.

She added: “We know, for example, that women are particularly vulnerable to domestic and sexual violence, and a lot of it is them not knowing how to manage it, how to handle it, how to respond to it, how to say, these are my boundaries.”

Dr Patterson also highlighted one of the Crisis Centre’s main principles: everyone has a right to a life free of violence. She stressed the importance of all girls knowing they have the right to live without fear or pain.

Officials plan to develop recommendations to support young girls in schools, taking into account concerns raised by participants during the event.