Dear Mimi,
I am 19 years old and I have two children for my father. No one outside our family knows that these children are mine. My mother gave birth to me shortly after she married my father and after me, she was unable to have any more children. After so much pressure from my father’s family, my mother took me to my father the month I first saw my period and my father raped me. I was about 11 years old at the time. My mother stood outside the door and when my father finished she took me and bathe me and told me not to cry that it wont be painful anymore after this first time. She said I was doing an important job because I will help her give my father more children. She asked me if I wanted siblings and I said yes and she said I will be the one to help bring siblings. My father raped me repeatedly over the next few years in which I had two children with down syndrome and one who was a stillbirth. Anytime I was pregnant, my parents will fly me to a neighboring African country and my mother will wear a fake stomach. Once I gave birth, she will take the children as hers. People will come and celebrate, I will pretend to be happy. I had everything I wanted, a car at age 15 with a driver, designer bags and shoes and trips abroad. My parents allowed me miss school, be rude to my teachers and do whatever I like. After the pregnancy that was a stillbirth my mother said I wont need to help with siblings anymore, but recently my father has started calling me to his room again. I do not want to continue. My sibling-children have down syndrome and I cannot participate in this anymore. What should I do?
-Fed Up
Dear Fed-Up,
I am shaking reading your letter. This is unbelievable, its criminal and unconscionable. I think you need to get away from them if you can. Ask to go to school abroad and once they help you leave the country, please get counseling. If this was a country in which there was law and order, I would have asked you to report to the police. I am sorry you went through this. I hope your children will be treated well and get the care they need. Birth defects are one of the main consequences of reproducing with a close family member. I wish you healing.
Love,
Mimi
Mimi knows something about everything; if Mimi doesn’t know, who will? Email Mimi at [email protected]