Women Empowerment

She was 19.

She was raped, strangled. 

When she wanted to shout, her tongue was cut,  limbs paralyzed. Her eyes were bulging out. 

Heart pains watching such incidents in news every now and then. 

We failed her as a system including administration, law and order, media and also as people of this country. Enough has been written about the failure of Government, administration and media. I will write about the people of the country. 

Yes, people of this country! Because we discuss about such incidents sitting comfortably in our living rooms on how wrong all this is, when will this end. And how women should be empowered. We take pride in being ultra modern people who give women their rights. The right to let her wear the clothes of her desire, the right to let her work, the right to sometimes order food when she is not in mood to cook. The right to have a house help for household chores. The right to have a smartphone and the right to update the whatsApp status and so many other rights you see, which by the way, are with *conditions applied*. 

Charity begins at home and be the change you want to see in the world - women empowerment is one of the prime examples of this change that is required in the society we live in. 

And to be honest, I don't take this stand and I am not writing this for the women. Because, most women have already accepted it. They find it absolutely ok when her man shouts at her or gets angry on her for not so great food. Or when he gets angry when he finds that his shoes are not polished. Or when he asks "Did I not tell you to clean up my cupboard! Why is it not done?" with a disrespectful raised eyebrow!  Or when he thinks that it's perfectly ok to show someone else's anger on his wife. Or when everyone believes that raising the child is the prime responsibility of the woman and the man of the house can keep browsing smartphone. Or when one fine day the man commands his wife that she cannot go to work. Most women have accepted that this is how it is! And those who don't accept it are labelled as over outspoken, hard to deal with, the typical jhagda karne wali. Some women start accepting these things to avoid the wrong labels and to get the right labels - tolerant, obedient, the typical komal, sheetal expectations. But deep inside all women get hurt. So, I was saying that I don't take this stand and I am not writing this for women who have already heartfully accepted this flaw in the society. I take this stand for the next generation. 

The next generation is watching you. They say that kids do what they see.

Whenever you raise your voice on your wife, and your wife finds it ok, your kid is watching and absorbing it. He/she will soon subconsciously understand and take it for granted that this is how women can and should be treated. They will believe that it is the men who can "grant" rights to women. This is exactly what happened with you. You are doing what you have imbibed from your family and society over the years and kind of normalized it. 

I must make it a point here, that I am not against compromises. But, just that it should be a two-way street and should be done by self and not forced upon. 

So, dear ultra modern people out there, take a stand and be the change you want to see in your society. There is a long long way to go.