D’Angel Tells Women Facing Domestic Abuse To “Pack Up Yuh Tings!”
D’Angel has always been vocal about her experiences with abuse in prior relationships. During a recent Instagram live with industry peer Macka Diamond, she offered advice to women seeking to break free from such unions.
“Don’t talk when yaa leave,” D’Angel started. “If you have children inna the relationship it’s really, really tricky sometimes… but sometimes you’re there and you’re fed up so hear wah yuh do, pack up yuh tings dem, cause yuh must have a cousin, aunty, madda, father, somebody inna di family yuh confide inna or sometimes yuh have a good likkle friend weh have yuh back.
“So pack up yuh likkle tings dem, pack up yuh pickney dem and tek weh yourself… Lock off the phone, nuh have nutten fi do wid dem… When you’re in an abusive relationship yuh haffi have yuh plan B cause if yuh tell di man seh yaa leave den him coulda kill you and kill himself.”
Murders stemming from domestic violence have plagued Jamaica in recent years, and continues to rear its ugly head in 2020 with the murder of 26-year-old Nevia Sinclair, and the murder-suicide of St Catherine residents Suianne Easy and Jamaica Defence Force Corporal Doran McKenzie.
D’Angel urged women to be wary of early red flags, including verbal abuse and emotional manipulation.
“What I’m recommending women to do is to identify these things, find your self worth and your value and what you’re about and don’t depend on a man,” she said. “If you’re depending on him, don’t be afraid to walk away and to let go because sometimes you’re so talented, you have so much in you and you don’t know because you’re with somebody that’s afraid for you to go out and be independent because him want to control you “
She experienced this first-hand after moving to Kingston years ago to embark on a modelling and music career. Revealing that she came from St Catherine empty-handed, D’Angel said her then partner became controlling.
“Mi never have no car, mi never have nothing at all,” she said. “I was in a relationship, somebody (he) lend me a vehicle and if mi nuh comply wid dem, ‘stop mi vehicle and come outta it now, mi waan mi key’, cause I never say where I was going, mi never communicate, mi just a do mi thing…
“Dem lend mi di likkle vehicle and dem a show dem powers, so I eventually got my own vehicle because that motivate mi fi get mi own vehicle… Sometimes when him tek back di vehicle, him give mi back, mi still tek it, because yuh know seh mi haffi get round, but it was in my intention to get my own, yuh haffi have your own things.”
The discussion was born out of a series of online discussions hosted by Macka, who recently released the single, Talk Up, which tackles domestic abuse.
Watch D’Angel and Macka’s live session below.