Author- Sayyeeda Hoora Anis

Feminism – a word which has become  quite popular recently and is always thrown here and there by the media irrespective of the fact whether they know the meaning of the same or not.While the women across the world are fighting for equality and are actually doing a commendable job in it but should we not be focusing on equity rather than equality? Since time immemorial women have been fighting some serious issues like equal job opportunity,harassment,dowry,etc and they actually worked in the right direction for a very long time.But recently a transition is seen in the way of their protests worldwide and mind you,this seems like a catastrophe as this group holds prejudice against men.

For example,we know that there are certain jobs where women are not allowed to show their caliber but is it right to blame men for this as the same problems are faced by the opposite gender too,as in the field of nursing, babysitting etc.So when we are talking about the rights,we should be focusing on the rights of both the genders.Why have we taken upon ourselves to solve these crises alone? Shouldn’t we be including men who have suffered in this category in our protests too? Or are we afraid that their inclusion will hamper the essence of ‘feminism’?Wouldn’t it be better if we call it ‘humanism’ rather than ‘feminism’?

The question of equality should not arise in places where it is easier for women to compromise.Rather equality stands for bringing various people on the same pedestal irrespective of their gender,caste,creed,color,religion etc. But during the past half a decade the word ‘feminism’ has manifested itself in such a way in our minds that the mere use of this term creates in our minds an impression of ‘Pink Revolution’ or a siren.

Initially the term feminism was seen as a powerful medium of women rights’ propagation but lately,due to its misuse,it has subsided to a more derogatory meaning which is a cause for alarm for activists worldwide.While the #MeToo movement recently garnered a lot of controversies and media attention and aptly treated some ‘alpha males’ of our society by putting them behind the bars, what we can’t ignore is the fact that the women also misuse the same movement to malign the image of other men,sometimes just to settle the scores or to gain publicity.The mental trauma that the victim and his family has to go through can’t be explained in words.But if a lady is pointing a finger towards you,you should be damned wrong by the media.

Did anyone say feminism?Eve-teasing has been and will always remain a black spot on our society. Everybody strongly condemns it. But have we never seen a group of girls passing comments on boys making them uncomfortable? What do we call it? Adam- teasing? Or have we come to terms with the fact that these issues do not bother men? Well,they do,take it from me.
In buses,metros if a guy doesn’t leave his seat for a lady then he is looked down upon but when can be become known to the fact that ladies too can be chivalrous enough to let other ladies take their seats?  How conveniently we subdue the rights of others! The same rights for which we have been relentlessly fighting for a long time.We have become so busy criticizing people for what they have done to us that we have forgotten the reins of our lives are in our hands and it is we who decide whether we want to battle all the odds to excel in our lives or hide behind movements and agendas and reservations to get our wishes fulfilled. The latter has no charm in it,trust me.What if Rani Laxmi Bai  opted for sati at the demise of her husband?What if Mary took a radical step to stop the wagging tongues when she conceived Jesus Christ?What if Agatha Christie,like her other contemporary writers,chose to write romantic novels?What if Malala Yousafzai chose to be just another simple girl of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa?Or what if Oprah Winfrey decided to live a secluded life after the rape mishap?The world is grateful that they didn’t. Instead they chose to take the path less traveled. That they didn’t choose to play the victim card. And that they didn’t let their gender come in their way of glory and success.These ladies rebelled against the tide of time and chose not to hide behind the curtains of excuses and self-pity.Why are the ladies today not capable of playing it that way,that old school way? Where you don’t have to compromise anything to get what you want? Where your fame and success do not come at the cost of someone else’s humiliation?

An acquaintance of mine in college called herself a proud feminist.She organised parties and slogans for various such events. But when the time came to stand in queues for payments of fees etc.,she played the ‘ladies first’ card and got the work done for herself. Girls never questioned her because she was their ‘leader’. And boys dare not even raise an eyebrow as that would probably make them the villainous subject of the monthly women’s magazine. Well,were we talking about feminism and equality? Shouldn’t this be regarded as pseudo- feminsim or,worse,fake feminism?

We girls have focused so much on equality that we may have forgotten the essence of humanity. We have started believing that world exists just for us and we can get anything we want by just playing the feminism card.Not very recently a guy was pushed out of the ladies’ compartment from a running train which cost him his life.His only fault was that he boarded a wrong compartment.A woman who  has always been considered an epitome of love,compassion and care,how on earth did you become this brutal and aggressive?

We all should focus on becoming a better human being. We need not move together in group like wolves or hounds. We should try and excel individually,then only can our goals be reached. There are numerous examples of women around the world who followed their hearts and got whatever the aimed at. ‘Hell has no fury like a woman scorned.’

Be angry at the changing political and social situations around the world. Be worried about the current environmental scenarios of our universe. Be scorned by the business called war. Be vexed by the plight of people in war ravaged zones who have given up hopes of seeing dawn ever. Feel all these emotions deeply and focus them to do something productive. Be a human prism.

 Let’s rise above ourselves,avoid the small talks. The world needs us, individually, to show our lights. We just can’t forever hide behind a word or a color. We are a lot more than that.

Rise and shine!