“No that’s too far. You will not be able to travel home alone,” just another concerned parent opinionating about their daughter’s choice of school, college or job.
Yeah we have progressed except we must think in which direction. We claim ourselves to be part of the progressive, forward-thinking crowd – physically, verbally but not mentally. When it comes to our own sisters or daughters none of this applies but when it comes to a debate about ‘Women’s Rights’, we can all say we men and women should be given equal, opportunities, rights, etc. But when we really introspect on this matter, we realize that the real problem is different. It is in the mindset of the people.
Of course I understand the concern of the parents but until everyone thinks differently there will never be a change. Maybe we can think of a solution. What about teaching girls to be independent? Maybe teaching them how to do small-small things like buying grocery, paying the bills, etc. will teach them the skills. But we are reluctant to even send them to the nearby shops. Is this really a permanent solution? Not really. How long can we keep girls in a cocoon? Some day or the other we will need to let go the leash so isn’t it better that they are prepared for it? Maybe learning a few self-defense tactics will do. These are just a few suggestions; there are many other things that can be done.
Even if none of this is really done, atleast girls should be given a chance for better education, jobs, anything for that matter. as long as there are constraints on them, their potential can never be fully exploited. And until every girl or woman has complete freedom to make her own decisions and go forward with it, we can never call ourselves a developed nation.
Of course we have to follow our culture, traditions, values, etc. but only those which are relevant in the contemporary scenario and those which benefit both the gender equally because most of them were made by patriarchal societies. Why did we abolish Sati? Because we realized that it did more harm to our society than good. Similarly, until we understand the importance of gender equality, we cannot work towards its achievement. The condition has improved over the years but I believe there is still a lot of scope.
Yeah we have progressed except we must think in which direction. We claim ourselves to be part of the progressive, forward-thinking crowd – physically, verbally but not mentally. When it comes to our own sisters or daughters none of this applies but when it comes to a debate about ‘Women’s Rights’, we can all say we men and women should be given equal, opportunities, rights, etc. But when we really introspect on this matter, we realize that the real problem is different. It is in the mindset of the people.
Of course I understand the concern of the parents but until everyone thinks differently there will never be a change. Maybe we can think of a solution. What about teaching girls to be independent? Maybe teaching them how to do small-small things like buying grocery, paying the bills, etc. will teach them the skills. But we are reluctant to even send them to the nearby shops. Is this really a permanent solution? Not really. How long can we keep girls in a cocoon? Some day or the other we will need to let go the leash so isn’t it better that they are prepared for it? Maybe learning a few self-defense tactics will do. These are just a few suggestions; there are many other things that can be done.
Even if none of this is really done, atleast girls should be given a chance for better education, jobs, anything for that matter. as long as there are constraints on them, their potential can never be fully exploited. And until every girl or woman has complete freedom to make her own decisions and go forward with it, we can never call ourselves a developed nation.
Of course we have to follow our culture, traditions, values, etc. but only those which are relevant in the contemporary scenario and those which benefit both the gender equally because most of them were made by patriarchal societies. Why did we abolish Sati? Because we realized that it did more harm to our society than good. Similarly, until we understand the importance of gender equality, we cannot work towards its achievement. The condition has improved over the years but I believe there is still a lot of scope.
"If we teach a man, we teach an individual;
If we teach a woman, we teach a whole family."