Violence against women

These days there is ever-growing news about violence against women in various forms. When you get to hear, see or know about them, it’s quite disconcerting. Why does that happen all the time. Why do men and sometimes women themselves try to intimidate and try to subjugate other women. Whilst various motives exist, the core fact remains that women face the brunt of brutal assault with the sole reason to subdue them into doing something against their will.

Every soul that’s brought into this world, is born free to live a life of their own choice. The very essence of life, lies in giving that freedom to that child to choose and do what he or she wants to do and pursue it to its heart’s contentment. Yet, unfortunately, this never happens. Since childhood the kids are prescribed a thematic life, whether they like it or not. I totally am not blaming only the conditional upbringing for such malaise. All of these along with the age old societal moralistic values, in most instances, has no relevance or practicality to today’s scenarios is the cause for such violence against women. Basic amongst is the feeling of male superiority over women which in itself needs to be condemned. A chauvinistic attitude that the alpha male has the ultimate supremacy over everyone else needs to be erased from the minds of everyone. It is these prejudiced dogmas that has been carried over timeless generations that has resulted in such malady.

Unfortunately, it is this same society that goes to various places of worship where Goddesses are worshiped in such piety. I am just taking the Goddesses as a metaphor and does not restrict it to a particular religion. Yet when they step out, they see women as objects of desire or of servitude. It applies to the entire man-kind that tries to pillage women as if they were meant for serfdom. The basic quality that’s required as a prerequisite to curtail this angst is to “Respect” women folk as equals, at least.

In general women are harassed and harangued in various different ways in daily life. They are made to do tasks which they are not inclined to do, yet in a way forced to do as if they were born to do that only. When times change, everything around us changes, yet the edits remain as if they were cast in stone, unbroken for a lifetime and beyond. In the olden days when the men folk went out to work, the women folk stayed behind to take care of household duties. The men folk had to do hard physical labor in the fields, typically agrarian, to feed the family. As it would be an arduous task for the lithe women folk, they stayed at home to cook food, rear children and support the family. So in short, there was nothing demeaning about what each one did. For a family to survive and grow in a healthy manner, both had to labor. It was just that, each one did what they were good at based on the physical condition and adaptability.

With the passage of time, industries sprung up with new technological inventions etc., Women were also educated and were knowledgeable and intelligent. Going to work was not the prerogative of men alone. It belonged to women as well. Now, this brought about a change in family dynamics. If women also go to work along with men, who would take care of the family? Was home the jurisdiction of women alone to be taken care of? Would it not be the responsibility of both individuals to share the responsibilities jointly? True, yet, men were not attuned to this new found liberation of women from the jail called as home. The very thought of appanage of choice that vested with the men folk for generations together, being snatched away from them, was just not acceptable.

This liberation of women unshackling the bonds, created by men, has resulted in a ripple effect of insecurity in men. They are unable to accept this so called, insubordination, apostasy or dereliction of duties by women. At the same time, they are totally unwilling to accept and adhere to the new diktat. How can they bring about the same control, domination over women folk. Simplistic answer is physical violence against women. And so it is perpetrated at every stage in life, even before the child is out of the womb of the mother. In some instances, they are aborted as a girl child is considered as a bad omen. Once they are born, they are treated in an indifferent manner and not given the same rights as that of a boy child. And as the girl grows, at every stage, it is segregated, isolated physically, mentally and is made to realize that it’s a sin to be born a girl in this world. To top all of this the physical abuse also starts in some cases as a child and continues into its girl / womanhood all for subjugation so that they can never ever insurrect themselves against a man.

What apathy. When will this end. Only when, the man realizes, is able to accept and confirm that the woman is his equal, if not better for the society to flourish in a peaceful and vibrant manner.

#Thoughts