ANTONIO Harris is a broken man and he’s saddened that since the death of his children’s mother, Sophia Johnson in 2014, he has been unable to get them into school.
When the Jamaica Observer spoke to Harris last week at the vigil held at the Pechon Street Car Park in Kingston to mark the 150th anniversary of the Morant Bay Rebellion, he said that as a single father he tries his best to earn his bread honestly and support his children Jaheen and Aaliyah Harris, aged seven and five.
But, when Johnson died he could not locate the children’s birth certificate or immunisation records, which have caused him a great drawback. Harris further explained that they didn’t live together and from what he’s seen the children have been out of the education system for almost two years.
“I never lived with her when she was alive and people would always tell me that she would leave them and go away all the while, go about her business. I don’t even know the school they were going to,” he said, lamenting how his child’s mother cared for their children.
However, when he chose to visit them last year, he received bad news.
“Someone told me she was sick and I went to the hospital and saw her with tubes through her nose. She couldn’t walk or talk, she was just there,” Harris said. “When I went back to visit her on December 11, 2014, I heard that she died.”
It was at this point that he made efforts to get them into school, but this proved futile — the necessary documents could not be found. To make matters worse, Harris said that in an attempt to get the birth certificates, checks at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital revealed that there were no records of the children being born there.
“Jubilee no have no evidence seh is down there dem born. It look like she never register them any at all,” he said.
Opting to try another route, Harris said he spoke to a school teacher on August 16, 2015 who offered to help. But since that day, he is yet to see or hear from her.
“She explained to me that RGD [Registrar General’s Department] would assist with a late entry and said she could help me. I give her the forms I had from August and me no see her back,” he said.
Added to that, Harris said that he was told to get some of Johnson’s relatives to verify that the children are indeed hers, but admitted that he only met her sister when she died.
“I don’t know any of her family members. I saw her sister once when she died and even she offered to help, but I have been unable to locate her,” he said.
In the interim, Harris said that the issue has caused him nothing but stress and he has contemplated placing them in State care in order for them to get an education.
“They are not going to school and that’s the problem. I work and look after them it’s just getting them into school is the problem, because I don’t have the birth paper or immunisation card. It a stress me out, especially when I see everyone’s children going to school and them nah go. I wanted to send them to a home but it pain me heart. I just need assistance in getting those documents,” he said.
Moreover, he explained that whenever he has to work, which consists of either masonry, carpentry or gardening, he has to bring them along with him.
“More time I have to bring them to do yard work with me. Sometimes Jaheen will get a shovel and paste mortar on the wall and rub it down. Him will get him hammer and learn him stuff, but him need fi go school,” he stressed, adding that his daughter is almost six and does not have an early childhood education because of the issue.
Harris maintained that getting assistance to have his children enrolled in school is his main concern, as for him, education is his main priority and time is running out.
Morning met an metters
Dis story pis mi off dis morning.
Know these kids his kids havent
Been to school in years?
Him seh the mother use to leave
The children alone an gone bout
Har business?
An it looks like she never register de pickney dem when
Dem born?
Him nuh know nuh family member?
Him stress?
He want to award the children to the state?
Where was dis f**king sperm donor fromm de youth dem born
The little boy is 6 yrs old.
An him just ah find out how
His own kids living really!!!!
Him impregnate dis woman not once but twice.
An dis dutty bwoy dont know
Not one bloody family member
This is absolutely ridiculous.
And then him seh him hear she use to leave them on their own.
An the mother was alive at that
Time.
Where dis man did f**kin deh??????????????
Him ah struggle thru de mother
Gone really? Careless pussy!!!!!!
Yes yuh struggling because know
Yuh have to take responsibility
Which your clearly not use to
Suh.
It is an inconvenience to yuh
An yuh wan wah give dem to de wah????
Battybwoy where is your family
Fe give yuh ah strenghth with
These kids.
After not being in there lives
An clearly not giving to f**ks
When the mother was alive.
Yuh have ah nerve give dem to state.
If yuh as the parent cant love
An nurture these kids.do you
Think seh de state give two f**ks niggaaaaaaa.
Jamaican goverment dont give one f**k bout de country
Muchless pickney dat awarded
To de state.
The emotional an mental trauma
That these children are enduring.
Will follow dem ah lifetime
An before yuh admit dat your ah
Jhon crow fadda.
An use dis time to make up for your absence!!####### yuh ah talk bout give dem up thru school
Bull shit.
When there is a will there is ah way love conquers all.
An dats what these kids need
De man dont even know were dem born.
Mi ignorant fe yuh bwoy an
The mother is decesased an also
Is wrong.
But double wrong if yuh dont stand up for your kids thats what ah real man would do.
Get the kids in school an help
Them.
What future duh dem have without love an support.
Teacher nuh call yuh back
Well keep bloody calling dumb ass.
Knock on doors one must open
Pressure bust pipe.
Look how much fatherless an motherless youth de pon de streets of Jamaica.
An your retarded decison making
Only adds to it.
Ladies life an creation of life
Is so precious please uno choose.
The children of your fathers
Carefully the childs life an future depends on it.
Blessed
My wish for these 2 Motherless children is that a Children’s Advocate agency sees this story, and help their father to get the necessary documents for them to start school. Wish them the best.
I couldn’t class that wutless man any better, judge Judy. He didn’t know the mother of his children was sick. He doesn’t know any of her family members. He doesn’t know where his children were born and he didn’t know they weren’t going to school. Where has he been all their life? Just worthless so.
Judge Judy please HUSH your judge mental ass !!!
Where he was before does NOT matter, the point is he is here NOW and TRYING and is taking responsibility for his children. Perhaps his NOT that educated or literate to fill out the paperwork and maneuver through the system and he NEEDS HELP !!
Blame the stinking negligent Jamaican government and NOT him !
WHERE is big Hanna or whatever she name minister of child development or child matters who got the job obviously because of her pretty looks and not her qualifications?
BLAME THEM !!
Yes, he should not talk about a woman who dead, but what he say he dam well say, the mother did not have the documents . Is she family who had d yutes tell him this.
She DONE dead already rest her soul…. We focusing on the living now.
He has NOT abandoned his yutes NOW that they are all he has. Where is the REST of Jamaica and all d big shot party people who DONT give back to the real poor like this who need help and need a few items ?
TWO years dem not in school and NO social worker Nuh VISIT HIM YET ? Cuss dem out, not d poor county man who TRYING a living !!
I am a woman and sometimes I know when woman and man done, is NOT always d man fault… Sometimes woman keep the children away or isolate d man when he has no money to give, although he can give his pickney TIME, what worth more than money.
No way I am sayin he is perfect. Social services need to evaluate him. Help him find proper work, proper housing and HELP HIM KEEP HIS FAMILY TOGETHER !
HOW CAN I HELP THIS MAN AND SEND SOME CLOTHES , TOYS and SNEAKERS for these children ? I need a direct number … Jamaica full of so much scammer and TIEF yuh Nuh kno how to help or where to send d money .
Yes smart source@1:15
De man is ah waste man
Straight.no excuse none
Wat so ever i pray god send
Some good christian minded
People fe adopt these children
An give them a chance to have
Ah future.
Him have so much to say bout dis an dat an nah cknowledge
He is ah dead beat fadda
Him nuh fe procreate with another human being.this story
Is outrageous smart source
Mi bexxxxxxxxx starrrrrr.
Him need to own up to him shit
I smell sperm donor, wutless man, pussyhole, nasty rass,careless f**ker, jailhouse..too many things wrong..how yuh fi nuh know nothing bout u two pickney dem?..christ Jesus, cover those children lord..r.i.p to their mother and please please god, give strength tovthe johncrow fi wuk and take care of them..
Judge Judy has a right to her opinion, she voiced every question i was thinking. Yes it matter that he was not there, i bet they had to force his ass to take them and if the teacher promise to help him then why not go back to the teacher to remind her! Do you really think is just a random teacher that say she going help him? This man doesnt like responsibility, even now he wants to give them up to the state. How the hell you dont know where your KIDS born. this just upsets me.Then come talking bout mother was all over the place now that the woman not here to defend it!
I now see why 95 percent of the children in Jamaica has no fathers and the government there don’t arrest for child support as much as Trinidad . When the men do come forward, critics want to crucify him. Take that anger out on all the men that never came forward .
All the children wo don’t even know their father’s name.
Giving your children to the state is not murder or a bad thing if he is so desperate and take them to work and don’t know what to do next .
Giving them to the state to educate does not mean you g e up your right as a father . It is seeking help in his case.
Greta how the dead woman ‘s family gets NO blame for heading the children over to the “absent father ” like old dirty clothes without lookin back.
What a way this yard society blameful, critical and judge mental when people tryin to mend them ways . A father who start try is a dog. Wonderful . Bout Christina family fi adopt them ! Get d f**k out of here with that shit ! HOW much ‘ Christian ‘ people lef dem neighbor hungry or TIEF from d church or abuse dem own pickney ?
Christianity cannot save him, but social service , govenment help, training can help better him life .
Anynonmous@4:30
What r u not saying first which
Bloody foster agency in Jamaica
Or f**kin America actually help
How much children homeless inna
F**kin jamaica boys an girls
They will tell you storys of
Being molested an abused
An rum back to the f**kin streets.
An are molested an raped by f**kin man boys an f**kin girls
Alike.
Me adopt two f**kin kids myself
Brother an sista weh runway
From your so called.
System inna rass jamaica dat takes care of children.
The little girl was repeatedly
Raped so was her brother.
To the point weh dem did literally.
Ah try fe kill dem self never
Want to live knowbody did
Want dem including society.
The little bwoy me bloodclot me
Spend my money an put him an him
Sista inna counseling fe two yrs straight.
They are honour roll f**kin
Students my beautiful daughter
Chantel just get a bloody
Scholorship.
An are happy loved an have lwft dem past inna de pasttttttt.
My sister is a state investagtor for children that are abused neglected or parents
Cant take care of them.
Were are you when my sista have to investagate children in
Goverment homes that have been raped an sodimized.
Then these children are bounced
Around from place to place
Experiencing whether it be
Mental or physical f**kin abuse.
Till dem runaway what are you not saying.
Your talking bout crucify man
Really weh man did de when him claim the babymother always ah
Left dem pon dem bloodclot own
Excuse me man nuh know where or when pickney born.
Where was he afta bloodclot bany number one is two him get.
He was not there him dont know
One family memba but meet sista
An neva take har numba
An teacher nuh call him back fe
Help him wid him youth dem
Fe get inna school him cant call har back.
An continue to reach out fe help pressure bust pussyrasclot
Pipe.
Bout man ah work an ah try
Try way try wat these children have a living parent.
An anybody bring life in dis
World owe that child an obligation to provide love
An stability.an hopes that child will be able to fend for his life an be productive.
An him no matyer weh it take if yuh haffi wrk two job lose.
Sleep dats wat a parent does
Yuh know how much man mi know
Take care ah dem youth with out mother comb all dem daughter hair.
Dats ah daddy#!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mi can give yuh example afta bloody example
Where is there any excuse ge ah wukless pupa
Weh him did bumborassclot did deh.
Then yuh seh gal family fe shame.where de bwoy family deh!###########
Dem cant run in an helpppppp
Dont talk bout this dead woman
Family de cause
De dutty sperm donor dont knowwwww??????????!!!####
Where inna yuh argument yuh make sense.
Those children know dem have a fadda an you aho seh well i cant help yuh.
Do you think they give to shitts weh an who dem come from
Dont care!!!!!!###
They are treated has objects
An eyesore to society.
Education is the last ting pon fe dem mind fe de youths dem
In general.
What are you not saying to you
Know the literacy rate inna de island weh yuh ah talk bout
Can help really nigga.
Bout man ah dry if ah one dumpling it haffi share if ah one bulla it haffi share
It ah suga an wata it haffi share.
Bout man ah try him nuh have ah woman can act as ah mom to these children.
An as far as christian im not talkin bout church.
But more so these children can be adopted by a family whom
Have spirituality since him wan fe gid dem weh
Grounded mi hurt fe dem youth
Yah straight mi heart ah bleed.
Which part ah Jamaica yuh come
From cause yuh can be ah jamaican.
Ah talk bout goverment can train man fe him get bet job
Lmao were inna history of Jamaica yuh see dem ah duh dat????????
Lokk how much man an youth inna de get woulda want dat de oppurtunity.
Watch yah mon mi dun talk
Mi dun
I agree with everything judge Judy saying. He is a dead beat because a good father would at least know when and where his children is born. The fact that he does not know anyone in her family except for meeting sister once show that he wasn’t going around and taking care of his children and he’s still not taking care of them. He had two year to put pressure on the Jamaican government, there are 365 day in one year so times that by 2 and he still didn’t get them in school. He is a horrible father who are not use to responsibilities and use everything and everyone as an excuse. EXCUSES ARE ONLY GOOD FOR THE PEOLE WHO USES THEM.
Exaclty truth@8:03
Some people illiterate just like you seh excuses but all know him.
Nah point the finger on himself
People so ignorant.
Starr an den ppl ah come pon
Dis an ah tell ppl weh Jamaica
Can do an dem nuh come from
Know weh bout yah.
Are they would know how de system set how can anyone have any.
Excuse for dis manframe dat tell me one ting dem is ah dead
Beat toooooo.
Whether it be a man or woman