Why are we talking of boldness for change? Is it really essential? Why is change needed at the first place? Is society not empathetic towards women? Working in premium organizations, having the best of job in hand, having the best positions where gender parity is the culture, why are we seeking change.
No matter how big we have achieved, or how educated we are, the word sympathy, compassion when associated with a particular gender shows our disparity towards it. The gender dichotomy based on anatomy is there and can never cease to exist. There’s no doubt that the physical strength and structure are different for a male and female. But should we limit our women based on this? Should we not challenge it and overcome this physical barrier nature has provided?
We must enthral our daughters from early childhood in believing in their mental strength and help them in surpassing their physical limitations. The stereotypical attitude in raising a child needs to be enervated. For that the differential attitude in upbringing has to be fixed first. Who teaches a girl that she has to look beautiful? Who tells her to take care of her skin and restricts her from being under the sun? Who is behind her, being inclined towards physical appearance more than her mental skills? I am sure you all know the answer.
We must refrain from creating gender inequality by indulging boys and girls in different activities at home. We must not be the reason for pushing our girls behind the kitchen or household activity and making our boy enjoy her services. We must teach them right at our home, that they together own the responsibility for everything in their house. They should have the freedom to develop their interests rather than we forcing by stereotypical upbringing.
A bold change is needed in school curricula too. Women in history are shown as weak and easily subjugated by the powerful kings captivating them as objects of desire. This whole thing creates a lot of negative impact on the developing minds and is responsible to an extent for the ruckus in the society.
If we look at the western world, gender parity is missing there too. Women don’t get paid equally for the same work. Judy Greer, Jennifer Lawrence have come out in public and voiced their opinion on it. It’s not about money but principles in general. It’s not only the commercial media which one might argue is driven by males where this disparity is seen but many important institutions too, decide wages based on gender. Gender Parity will be truly attained when gender is detached from remunerations and power positions.
How many women we see at the top positions today? Still a handful. And women, who are there sitting on the top people still ridicule them for one or the other reason. For a woman success doesn’t come easy. There are people who question her character’s integrity. If we want to work on this mind-set we will have to work today, right with our new generation, right from the cradle, when our boys are small and their minds are naïve.
Forget about the top positions, when I step out of my cocoon, I see a lot that is needed to be done in our country for the uplifting of women. The custom of child marriage, female foeticide, forced prostitution, female trafficking, molestation, rape, every heinous crime that comes to mind is still present in the society. A lot of work is being done in this area but a lot more still has to be done. Policy makers alone can’t help eradicate such issues unless we be the part of this change. We must show courage by raising voices against such people and boycotting them socially.
The masked dowry system in the elite class is another big issue. Many educated girls with good job positions don’t get a match if they can’t take the demanded gold in their marriage. We have to be bold in gathering courage to say NO for marrying a man who wants woman with a maximum bid for him as the life partner.
We all women should take the forefront in reshaping the destiny of other generations of women to come. Raising a boy who considers women as equal is going to ask for a lot of boldness from us. The societal norms will have to be broken, the changes in family customs will be sought. It is going to take a lot of nerve to do this. We will have to follow an untraveled path. There may or may not be men and women from previous generations who will join us in this run for the right of being equal but we all must decide our resolute on #beboldforchange.
I am sure if you had patience and spirit to read it through you will join in this campaign and have your own resolutions so that together we reach to a world void of inequality!