Self: 3. The power of uprising

Calls for socio-political change that began in the Middle East, now spread rapidly to other nations. In India, a 72-year-old Gandhian has launched his campaign against corruption. One man alone is catalysing change in a nation of over a billion people. His convictions should inspire women’s groups that seek gender equality yet lose steam in fighting for their rights.

Social activist Anna Hazare’s fast-unto-death has served to fire public imagination. A spontaneous solidarity now gains momentum, around a country fed up with expediency. The movement is named India’s second independence with housewives among others publicly raising voice against corruption.

With popular uprisings gathering around them, women have not stayed home to remain safe. They have filled the ranks in peaceful demonstrations for mass social causes. In Ivory Coast, the fatal shootings of seven women protesters have not deterred others from joining into campaigns with hopes for a brighter future for their children. 

Beginning from Tahrir Square in Egypt, women have both led and followed in protest marches. Their participation made a large contribution to forcing a regime change. But once that objective was achieved, the men made crystal clear that change does not include gender equality. New roles in Egypt’s nation building have thus become the exclusive male prerogative. 

Women must realize that their rights, in the minds of most men, are convenient bargaining chips. Brown writes the stark reality:

When negotiations with the Taliban seem like a good step, suddenly women’s rights don’t matter so much. When they need Pakistan as an ally, they accept the Pakistani government giving autonomy to regions of the country where women are utterly victimised by the parallel legal system. And alliances are made in Iraq with militia that in their spare time attack and kill women’s rights activists.

Indeed, the ‘male supremacy’ social learning begins at home. Most men around the world perceive household responsibility as ‘woman’s work’. Even in the liberal West, truly fortunate is the woman with equality in marriage or partnership!

For example, after more than a decade of a marriage Laura Munson thought was happy, her husband announced he wanted out of family life. Munson, who had focused on being the supportive wife and nurturing homemaker, asks:

Is showing up for dinner and doing the dishes ‘work’? Hunting for the Christmas tree, or building a house for our children where the hearth is warm all winter and the kitchen alive with smells and good food… Is that called ‘work’?

The bitter truth is the husband’s individual “needs to be happy” comes ahead of the wellbeing of the family unit. Factually, many women play at being indispensable, socializing spouse and offspring into the gender-based division of labour at home. With home-life responsibilities apparently waived, it is no surprise that husbands and partners are free to indulge in other pleasure-providing activities.

Women demean themselves in the relationship trying too hard to please. They invite derision when they allow men to set them impossible standards of perfection.  Women fulfiling both feminine and masculine roles has become the accepted trend. Films that are popular eulogize women that are far larger than life, e.g. Lara Croft. In attempting to meet the impossible standards, mortal women would obviously fail.

A news report on a study says:

Exposure to attractive, aggressive female characters actually increases expectations on women, including potentially inconsistent roles … These increased expectations for women occur not only among men, but among women as well, suggesting that women’s expectations for themselves are affected. 

Although the expectations created are unrealistic, more ordinary working women tend to lose confidence in the comparison. Their feelbad factors increase. Wives end up emotionally disrespected, their burden of childcare taken for granted.

According to a news report on another survey study of working women:

Mothers have less time to themselves and feel under greater pressure to juggle work and family life than the previous generation … 64 per cent said this was because they felt they ‘had’ to go out to work, while nearly a third (29 per cent) said they were under constant pressure to be the ‘perfect mother’.

In India too, when confronted with gender issues, women tend to passively await ‘rescue’. The general reluctance to dissociate from the male shadow has been consistent. As a result, women may vent their frustrations at the patriarchal system in private, but in the actual battle for equality, the spirit proves unwilling to either rock the boat or bell the proverbial cat.

The environment is perhaps conspiring now to compel women to re-examine gender concepts. They are being pushed to realize that powerlessness is based not on genetics, but on inhibitions learned through the ages. It is to be hoped that a change in stereotypical thinking will emerge.

The fantasies of women in Egypt have been demolished. They are also forced by circumstances, to shake off their traditional disinterest in political involvement. The Egyptian Centre for Women’s Right had earlier shelved their awareness programmes because nobody would show up. Today the centre is inundated with applicants actively seeking knowledge.

Davies reports:

… 24-year-old Nawara Belal was driving in Cairo when she was verbally abused by an army officer. "I got out of my car, opened the door of his car and slapped him in the face," she said. "I realized he wouldn't do anything about it, and it gave me the power to do what I wanted to do to every harasser in my past.”. 

Conditioned behaviours deferring to men do little to uplift women’s rights. Men used to dominant roles are not about to give up their advantage easily. Women have to throw off the yoke of traditions that has over centuries imposed a suppression of rights. Women need to be fearless in confrontation; what they have to lose are their chains.

Gender equality is not a common cause, but a goal beyond, that at least half of society is unconcerned with. Women’s rights are women’s problem entirely, and no ‘rescue’ is forthcoming. Women must take charge of their own destiny, and go the extra mile for themselves, their daughters and generations of girl children of the future. As one student activist declared in New Delhi, it is now or never for empowerment.

References for this post:

1. Brown, Widney. “Is the Egyptian revolution sidelining women?” independent.co.uk The Independent. Tuesday, 8 March 2011. 
2. Davies, Catriona “Revolution signals new dawn for Egypt’s women” cnn.com. CNN. March 8, 2011. 
3. Munson, Laura. “Relationships: How one woman kept her cool when her husband said he wanted to leave” Book Extract. dailymail.co.uk MailOnline. 2^nd April 2011. 
4. “Motherhood 'was better in the 70s and 80s', according to today's under-pressure working mums” News report by Daily Mail Reporter. dailymail.co.uk MailOnline. 8th March 2011. 
5. Narayana, Nagesh. “Anna Hazare's fast triggers public anger against corruption in India” ibtimes.com INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS TIMES. April 6, 2011. 
6. “Why Angelina Jolie movies give girls the feelbad factor” News report by Daily Mail Reporter. dailymail.co.uk MailOnline. 1st April 2011.