WHY GENDER EQUALITY?

Hello my readers!

Ever heard from people, “this girl talks too much about equality, such an oblivious human, knows nothing about constitutional rights of all citizens being treated as equals”. Yes?

Well, this is what I get to hear on a regular basis. Let’s dive deeper into this statement and see why it’s problematic. It is clear that we all do have constitutional rights and Article 14 of the Constitution of India reads as under: “The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.” Does this mean we all are actually equal? Not in reality. 

There are so many issues in the world right now, climate change, terrorism, venomous politics by power-hungry politicians, but I decided to talk about the issue that affects so many women like me on a daily basis, gender equality. Being born as a woman, we are seen as something which is lacking in us, “we are not a man”, “we don’t have a penis”. The ideas of masculinity and femininity are pushed onto us by our parents, caregivers and teachers. Being a woman, we are supposed to take on a certain role which is more often than not of a caring, loving, docile, all sacrificing person. Women don’t get a space to express negative emotions like anger, sadness, betrayal in a healthy way whereas men are celebrated when they become aggressive, “after all, men will be men”. I don’t want to be sounding attacking right now but this inequity in such a basic thing like being able to express one’s emotions is so crippling and horrifying. How do we even think about being equal in power, status, wealth, position, ranking, when even our homes are so unequal.

If I start talking about gender inequality, it starts the moment we are born. Girls are given pink colored toys, mostly barbie dolls to play with whereas boys are given “masculine” toys like cars and guns. Rarely do we see a male child playing with a doll! Then we enter our teenage years, girls are invariably expected to learn and do household chores like cooking, cleaning and what not! Boys? They are expected to just study and chill, also they are not allowed to show when they need support. Men are always seen as being rough and tough with a stone like heart and are banned from crying in any circumstance. “Mard ko dard nahi hota” is legit what they say at every situation. Society like these are not only detrimental to a woman’s rise but also to a man’s rise. Gender equality in this sense, is for everyone’s peace. It is a woman’s issue but encompassing in it, the broader society is a great way to go, men’s issues (no thought of belittling our issues) are somewhat related to it.

Gender inequality exists in all spheres of life. It is there in applications sent out to colleges, dress codes in schools, gender pay gap, discrimination at public places, casual sexism, ruinous violence against women, abusive male partners, and the list is unending!

This is exactly why we need equality. To empower the women and to also let go men of their hardiness and embrace each other with love and respect. Signing off for now. It’s sometimes a lot to take in, but we are going to understand this inequality’s root causes and what can we do to ensure a safe gender equal world.

With Love,

Pragya Nolakha.