Femme Fatale – 6

My most researched feminist outburst


Wikipedia refers to the feminist movement as a series of political campaigns for reforms on issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, women’s suffrage, sexual harassment, and sexual violence, all of which fall under the label of feminism and the feminist movement. Usually, quoting from Wikipedia is frowned upon within academic circles but this was an all-encompassing definition that I had to borrow and also most of this article contains points from a debate I participated in. Feminism is a cause that is close to my heart, enough for the universe to hand it to me as the topic for debate and for people who are around me to look in my direction whenever the word ‘feminist’ is mentioned. Leaving aside the whole episode of speaking about the topic, I believe I’m a better writer than an orator and most of my points could not be compressed into a 2.5 minute talk so here goes…
Feminism is a term that has been attached with a negative connotation, people are referred to as ‘feminazi’ which is wrong on so many levels that it is useless to dwell upon it. I’m not a man-hater exactly but when men usually take decisions on matters concerning women like in the case of the Texas abortion ban law, it does not help my temper. Sure, religious values can be upheld and even though biology is wrongly pulled into this particular discussion (I was a science student and I do not stand with most or any of the arguments made for continuing an unwanted pregnancy in the name of protecting ‘life’), surely, the woman who is concerned must be the one to make the choice? Patriarchy has seeped into such a level that data collection for research purposes are also largely biased and does not include women – which is why most women do not know to pinpoint symptoms of a heart-attack as the available information only caters to what men feel during such an event (Perez & Caroline, 2019). In this case, feminism must step in to save women’s lives even in situations that may seem ordinary and unrelated at first glance (you see how this goes beyond ‘silly’ complaints of flawed product design of jeans pockets that makes it impossible for women to carry phones in them, right?).

Feminism aims to bring down patriarchal notions, usher in equality and ensure women are treated as human beings and not as mere objects that are lesser than men. The more mainstream the word ‘feminism’ becomes, the better it is for humankind. Gender diversity in the workplace is a recent example of a positive wave that has emerged from the feminist movement where women raised their voices to be represented and be given a chance to prove their skills and contribute to productivity. This becomes more important in times when artificial intelligence threatens to take over people’s jobs because, guess what, when robots overtake the industry, women are going to be the ones who are left jobless (Martinho-Truswell & Emma, 2019). It is increasingly becoming important for women to fight tooth and nail to reclaim what is rightfully theirs (yes, I quoted Daenerys because she didn’t go insane for nothing!). The feminist movement also covers LGBTQIA+ rights – it is a large umbrella that encompasses various causes and the scope will only get widened when the movement is treated as a movement and not as a fashion statement. Men can also be feminists, women can choose to not be feminists – feminism is about offering rights and providing choices, not taking them away forcibly.

But feminism is also used by pseudo-feminists to hate on men – ALL of them. Most people who claim to be feminists are only selectively so – they also body-shame other women and try to pull them down, discriminate among themselves as rich/poor, black/white etc. – they do not understand the term completely and are usually focused on establishing their dominance over men – a wrong tendency indeed. Most people shy away from being termed feminists because it is associated with being ‘dominating’, ‘overly independent’, ‘not interested in men’ etc. When in movies (the portrayal of women in cinema has been fundamentally wrong since decades and is only witnessing little change) house wives are shown as ‘having no choice’ – it questions the inclusion of stay-at-home moms who willingly choose a family over career. Personally, I am all for women being financially independent but that does not mean they have to be hardcore go-getters who strive to break the glass ceiling while ignoring familial duties at all times. Women can mess up, the issue is that not all of us are ‘allowed’ to. Women are held at high standards and I am still trying to find an advantage of the feminization of ‘Mother’ earth/nature or the various goddesses who are termed ‘Ma’ because even though the concept may have arisen to showcase the importance of female figures in our lives and their supremacy (yes, I said that!), all this is only causing us pain.

In a world where phrases like ‘rape threats’, ‘honour killing’ and ‘female foeticide’ is used on a daily basis, feminism should not just be a movement, it should turn into a full-fledged revolution. Toxic masculinity has ruined us all and needs to be eliminated and feminism is the way to go.    

In the spirit of doing whatever I want to, even if this becomes ‘too much’, here’s a poem that I wrote just because:
You kiss me on my lips to get me to stop talking
You violate my body without my consent
You decide to put a life into me that I don’t want
And prevent me from taking further (or any) decisions
You leer and jeer at me as I’m walking
It doesn’t matter if I’m five or sixty five
I am a conquest that you want to flaunt around
Even when I say no
Especially when I plead so
I am afraid of your dirty hands that strangulate me
It’s passion, you justify, while I silently cry
You disfigure my face with chemicals
You keep me captive near the hearth
You credit my accomplishments to my curves
Your lustful eyes never want to see me rise
And when it gets too much, your patriarchal pride
You resort to stealing my ideas, my job and my meagre possessions
But I still walk on, bruised and hurt and then finally
You set me ablaze and I scream
So loud but you can’t hear me say
Bravo, you have finally achieved
Your wish to make me stop talking
As I perish into ashes and join Mother Earth
You laugh and find a new prey to repeat this cycle again
But until when?
How long till the world is left with only men?

References:

Martinho-Truswell, & Emma. (2019, Nov 01). As Jobs Are Automated, Will Men and Women Be Affected Equally? Retrieved from Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2019/11/as-jobs-are-automated-will-men-and-women-be-affected-equally?utm_campaign=hbr&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook

Perez, C., & Caroline. (2019, Jun 14). How male bias in data collection puts female lives at risk. Retrieved from World Economic Forum: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/06/how-male-bias-in-data-collection-puts-female-lives-at-risk

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