Boo! feminism

OK, i recently discovered a lot of pages talking about a tumblr called "who needs feminism?" it seemed to cut away the academic noise and show why men and women from around the globe (albeit, they are not representative of any sort of population except a large university in USA) think they need feminism. I found it interesting, and so i dug up this bit of research i did last year and i came up with these ‘celebratory’ figures about the status of women in India from various government reports and documents. i did this primarily to point out that although there maybe flaws in the woman's movement in general and also in India, it is essential that the movement continues - till it achieves what it set out to do - create a gender equal world (for all genders, not just the binaries).



In 1996 the crime against women was 6.8 % of total crimes [reported] which increased to 8.2% in 2006. In 2009 alone there were 38711 cases of molestation, 21397 cases of rape, 11009 cases of sexual harassment, 8383 cases of dowry deaths and 2474 cases of illegal trafficking. These are reported cases alone. This is a small proportion of total cases of violation and violence against women. It is reported that the female sex ration (females/1000 males) will worsen. Right now it is 932. By 2026 it would be 930. I talked about sex and violence. Now let’s talk money. The literacy rate among women has gone up to 57% (men are at 77%) but only 25% of the women working in public sector. In rural India, male wages are 1.6 times higher than females. Although everyone agrees, I haven’t yet come across any figures for the salary difference between men and women in the urban areas.



Here is the star -- on an average 195 women are subjected to sexual violence every 24 hours in India (2009 figures). These are only reported cases which even the reluctant officials admit is a small fraction of the actual number of cases. These figures are comparable to other parts of the world - both in developing and developed countries. What it conveys to me is simply this - no matter where women are from, to greater or smaller extent, we are vulnerable to gendered violence. Could it be because women are dehumanized in general; making crimes against us more “acceptable” or less shocking? So I wonder— if this is largely a universal phenomenon, how is any revolution going to ensure this does not happen? I would like to think that Emma Goldman felt similarly when she proclaimed “If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution.” so not only i need feminism. it drives me to believe that every revolution, every demand for rights must explicitly strive to have women's rights as one of its central goal. History is replete with examples where the women were relegated to oblivion after a revolution comes to an end. for them, the revolution, at the core, does not liberate.



There are other, more telling signs of trouble that the equal world is far far away. Over the years, i have asked many men (friends and acquaintances) if they would like to be reborn as women. almost every one of the men said that they would never want to be reborn as women (only one said he was indifferent to being born as either). One of the men even stated clearly, that there were great disadvantages of being a woman. clearly, even those who wanted to debate that indeed feminism has lived out its utility, that it has come to the end of its shelf life - did not actually believe that India is yet gender-equal.


I have asked the same question to women, many of whom have entertained the idea that being born as men would be better. so all those men/women/others out there who tell me that woman's rights issue is a dead horse, overdone. please explain, why is there so much reluctance to be born as a woman, if our existence is just as good as (and as sometimes suggested, better than) men?

so here is why i need feminism. because i want women to inherit an equal world, and there are god knows how many miles to go before we get there. but till that happens, i cannot stop demanding for an equal world.


Who needs feminism?

http://whoneedsfeminism.tumblr.com

Rainbows and Freedom

I attended my first Queer Fest in Delhi last year on 2nd June. This is in celebration of SC judgment to repeal section 377. The High Court rejected that argument to stay the law, saying that “moral indignation, howsoever strong, is not a valid basis for overriding individuals’ fundamental rights of dignity and privacy”. Well what i saw there was a real celebration-there were the colors or rainbows, there was music, drums and poetry, and of course there was pride. it was hard not to get caught up in it. i understood how important it was and what a feat it was for many to stand there and celebrate their sexuality and gender. What hit me was the closing comment from one of the organizers who requested the crowd to hold 2 minutes of silence for all those who had lost their lives in this struggles. it clicked in my mind that there is no fight for freedom without blood shed. Even one which is essentially a fight to love someone. Behind all the celebration was a long struggle involving sweat, tears heartaches and blood. How hard must it be for someone from a rural background to love someone? or someone who does not come from the upper income brackets? How does there struggle or freedom get reflected? the gathering of people there were mostly from upper middle class sections of the society. Where we assume the education, exposure to multi-cultures, higher incomes, may provide some additional insulation that the poorer or illiterate do not have. That is not to say that the struggles of those gathered there was any less. No, not at all. Every inch of that victory deserved celebration. i was just wondering how might the maid from slums, or the dhobi or the driver or the widow on the ghats of banaras celebrate their freedom.

The next day, the newspaper was splashed with colorful rainbow pictures of the pride. It reflected a victory well earned. But somehow, it seems very un-encompassing to me. Maybe eventually, and i really do hope so, there will be stories about those who live in the margins of the marginalized. maybe that will be the test of how deep the acceptance of 'love is love' is penetrating our world; how much it is rubbing and creating sparks and frictions of new kinds of society were we love who ever we choose, with consent and without fear.

Revolution

She touched another woman’s body and felt her personal heaven. In her kiss she tasted love, life and freedom itself. The prying eyes peeping from the windows dint see that. They only saw how God and Men were being mocked. They dragged her and her lover to the streets; they chained them with norms and separated them by bars. She broke the bars and tore the chains and screamed. And so it began.