MONSIEUR JEANETTE / Christio Wijnhard
Last Friday was Labor Day. In Suriname we say Wrokoman Dey. Workers’ Day. But then the male worker. When we talk about a grudge man, we are more likely to think of a male worker than a woman. For me, subsuming all workers into a male category is an outgrowth of our patriarchal world. Couldn’t it be done differently?
When it’s someone’s birthday, we sing Na Wan Suma Verjari Tide. Loosely translated from There is one birthday. Suma then stands for someone, and that can be either male or female. I also realized that in the private sector we have been moving away from the word manpower for a while. It has been the case for quite some time that the correct word is manpower. I think it’s good. We really need to recognize and emphasize that we have not stuck in the time when women’s rights were just the kitchen sink.
So I wondered why we didn’t like it Wrokoman switch to Wrokosma/Wrokosuma Dey. Yes, why don’t we do that? I put this to some women working in the private sector. My proposal didn’t really catch on. Some of them looked a bit like I was speaking gibberish. Another indicated that sma was also used to indicate a woman. I wondered if people understood that a woman like sma naming did not really have a positive connotation.
I was even more surprised that a counterargument was that when we spoke Wrokoman would change to Wrokosma it would only apply to women. I did not enter into any further discussion. Later I realized that Wrokosma Dey in that context, for me, would be a good name for a day to raise awareness about the position of female sex workers. There wouldn’t be anything wrong with that. This group of workers also deserves attention. And I know that ideas have been suggested by them to also become liable to pay taxes in Suriname.
Sex workers work hard and are therefore also workers. Workers who not only want the rights of worker status but also want to fulfill the obligations. Regulating this sector would save the state quite a bit of money. We all know that our oldest profession provides pleasure to various sections of the population. Yes, that top layer too. It is not the small (Toyota) Vitzjes that form a traffic jam at the Dutch embassy when the sun sets. But we digress. I just couldn’t resist highlighting this group for Labor Day.
Despite several detours, I can still imagine that one day we will transfer from Wrokoman Unpleasant Wrokosma. Manpower became manpower and the male ego survived. In addition, as much as we would like to resist, the day when we will have to accept that gender is not just about man and woman is getting closer. Pre-colonial societies had organized such matters better. Countries that still recognize multiple genders today are not plunged into hell.
In 2026 we will have each other Switi Wrokoman Dey desired. Who knows, maybe in 2027 we will dare to embrace every worker, regardless of gender, and just everyone Switi Wrokosma Dey to wish.-.
