Common Stressors

I had two male cousins who as children watched their father beat their mother repeatedly. They grew up to be very violent men. They beat their girlfriends and were really mean to their mother as they got older. The end result was the younger of the two killing his girlfriend and himself and the older one killed himself 2 months later. They never received any help dealing with the violence they grew up in and suffered most of their lives. I think one or both of them even experience sexual abuse in jail.
I grew up with alot of chaos involving drug abuse, lack of stability, and death of loved ones. However, I had many positive role models and supports to help me. I also was able to talk to teachers and different people in my community about the things that troubled me.

Of the 1,674 persons murdered in Jamaica in 2005, 91 were children (5.44%).  Over the past five years, more than 300 children have been murdered.  The number of sexual crimes among children continues unabated: 367 cases of rape and 346 cases of carnal abuse were reported in 2005. One poll  found that 85% of households that were victims of crime reported it to the police.  However, when the crime was rape, reporting was 20%.  If these figures are indicative of actual reporting, as many as 1,800 cases of rape of children might have occurred in 2005.  In 2004, violence caused the closure of schools; children were prevented from preparing for and taking exams while some had to be escorted to test centres by the police; attendance and performance declined in some schools; and, some children cannot move freely in or around their communities.  The psychological impact children and their families is beyond measure.

http://www.unicef.org/jamaica/resources_3950.htm

These children will face a very bleak future. School was a very good outlet for me and I didn't experience half of this trauma.