When I log
online I feel we as woman have , indeed , come a long way. One step out into
the real world , I see many men deciding when , with whom and where can their
wife / sisters or mothers may go , the dresses they may wear and all the
decisions regarding their well being , interests , finances , friends ,
children , work and more .
Also there is this
one complete segment of woman from all economics sects for whom the
marriage is sacrosanct and the world in itself..Barring a few exceptions the
fact remains that celebrating WOMANHOOD on just a day out of 365 days is far
from a fair deal in light of given facts .
Another
unfairness that stares in our face is a big thought provoking question: “IS
WOMEN’S DAY AN ELITIST PHENOMENON IN INDIA??
Earlier
violations and violence against woman was real time happenings and they
continue to be so to date. .Now there’s another dimension to it : VIRTUAL
violations...which by all means can be really toxic. Majorly the issues raised
online were the urban rage incidents or where the rights of urban woman were
violated. The angst of the virtual world were more for the ones of their own
kinds. The missing link of the trans- sectional nature make it pretty shallow.
To be true to its spirit of the woman’s day as it started in 1917 -marking
women’s contribution and partnership towards world’s growth , economy , and
development , its repercussions need to
seep down to the grass roots , then positively affect the woman en-mass and
address their day to day lived experiences . At the cost of sounding pessimist
, I must say we haven’t even reached half-way.sad but true!
I heave a
heavy breath of disillusionment as I sit
to put into words the tussle between my well meaning head and a well lived
heart. I can take a stance to actively celebrate one with all the frills of
consumerism- the cards , flowers , discounts on beauty treatments and loads of
other freebies around me or I can spare a day to thoughts of taking stock if we
have really arrived.
The mood for
this day- a day just before the D-day on
8 March is to feel blessed for my cool- sisters online associations, for being
able to exercise my independence of speech , work, dressing , behaviors ,
supporting patriarchy and much more , but not without accepting the woes of
many more of my tribe.
I still know
that there are many who can’t afford to speak what they feel , what they would
love to do , the way they would want to dress , the people they would like to
meet , the places they would die to visit , the way they would want their
relationships to bloom , the goals they want to actualise , or the basic
respect & acknowledgement that they would love to feel in the eyes of
people in their environment. None of these seem to be a very big demand but
denied even than. I am yet to think of ways or points of origin from where
WOMEN’S DAY becomes a source of new
power , ideas and fresh struggles across all sects of women in our society. But
the few places to begin with could be
·
Thanks
to Technology , you can sit at home and upgrade a few skills , connect with a
like-minded set of people , explore motivational stories of how others in
similar situations turned it around for good .
·
Spend
time with self- know your true feelings strengths and weakness , threats and
opportunities; explore effective ways of managing stress ( more so if you are
in a toxic environment) ,nurture your body with good food , thoughts
,meditation, reading ,listening to your favourite music .All this will give you
a perspective and give you strength to face the situations and finally turning
the tables.
·
Seek
help from various women helplines , speak out and DO NOT withdraw in a cocoon.
·
Accept
the fact that it is not feasible to separate women struggles from support from
men. Supportive patriarchy can be a point of great strength .Accepting facts
make things bearable.
·
...but
not challenging repressive patriarchy could be the end of dreams and desires
atleast in this lifetime.
While I still reflect and analyze on what could be a better way to
initiate something worth it on this women’s day , gain some solace in the fact
that there are many who are at an equal playing field and have waged a
revolution back home on Gender quality with their kids , You go and start
taking small affordable risks & actions to see a change in your
environment. Be rest assured it is worth the effort!
Have an empowering women’s day that paves the way for even more strength
in coming years.
·
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