Becky Blab

Speaking on the “Role of women in social renaissance,” Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi said women had historically proven to be more concerned and appreciative of grassroots issues. Whether it was environment or health, they were in the forefront of social change.Citing the success of self-help groups, she said these organisations led by women were engaged in social work at many places and stood up not just for the rights of women but also for those of local communities.

“The best way to start [moving for equitable gender equations] is for men to look upon women as individuals with intelligence who share common space in terms of rights, work and life.” And if laws still stood in the way of women’s emergence in any sphere of life, they needed to be axed or amended, she said.

During an interactive session, when someone asked about the role of women in upholding cultural values and tradition, Ms. Kanimozhi wondered why it was women who should always bear the onus of preserving values. Looking around, she remarked that while women were in the traditional attire (sari), most men sported suits. “We’ll soon have 50 per cent representation in governance. We started with 33 per cent so as to not scare men.”

The reason women are expected to uphold ‘culture’ and ‘tradition’ is that they are the childbearers and raisers, so they are supposed to pass these on to their children. Does that mean while the fathers/schools/others ostensibly teach them what’s ‘modern’? Slightly ironic that those ostensibly upholding tradition are also those who push strongest for social change.
Women as individuals. So simple yet still such a radical statement.

Via the Hindu.