FEMINISM DECODED – Everyone should be a Feminist

Be it Mary Wollstonecraft in the 18th century or Malala Yousafzai in the 21st century who ardently raised their voices in favour of feminism, women have been fighting for equality ever since the dawn of time and from what it looks like, the fight for their rights is far from its culmination any time soon. Development of a country not only means to introduce new technology or build tall towers but it also means that everyone has to work together, with equal rights being provided to everyone in every sphere in order to move forward towards wholesome development. You are fortunate enough if you live within a society where you don’t face discrimination. There are women from all around the world who are discriminated every day, every hour, every second. Girls are not allowed to go to schools, women are not allowed to go out and work or even step out of their houses for that matter in some places. They are still deprived of the freedom to wear what they want to; they are always required to cover their heads, face, legs etc. Till 2014, in Saudi Arabia, women did not even have right to vote. And there are many countries where women are not allowed to perform activities like driving, swimming or play any sports. What is the point of such pseudo-freedom? How can we talk about advancement and globalisation and development when the fairer sex is clearly being given the status of being secondary? For a huge part of the male population, especially the patriarchs, gender equality is of zero importance. They don’t care about women’s rights because they have already been provided with numerous privileges by the society that they enjoy. They don’t care if there is something that is lacking. But there are still some exceptions from all around the world who feel the need for women to have equal rights and are ready to fight for it and work towards empowering the female population that has faced oppression for over centuries. One example out of the many is that of the famous tennis player Andy Murray, who says it out loud that he is a feminist. WE SHOULD ALL BE FEMINISTS. Feminism is equality. Not the superiority of females over men like it is largely interpreted. But for some, feminism means giving women priority over men, which is totally a misconception. Feminism means that a woman should have equal rights and opportunities as that given to a man. Feminists have a utopian dream. They dream of a place where both men and women are treated equally in every household. A world where all women have access to proper education; where all women have the right to employment; where they don’t need permission from anybody to go out and do whatever it is that they would like to. They can wear anything and be anywhere at any time and no one will question their decisions and choices simply because of the fact that they are females. But for most women, it is an everyday fight. They face discrimination everywhere, at home, at school, in offices and if that wasn’t enough, even publicly on some occasions. The saddest part is that most women have to fight all by themselves on more or less a daily basis and yet they face heavy criticism and abundant hate from the society for their actions. To fight it all on an international front collectively, there are many campaigns that are organized like the “HeForShe” campaign which was launched by Emma Watson to spread awareness about women rights throughout the globe, aiming on making the world a better place for females to live in. Also recently the “March4Women” rally was organized for the purpose of raising gender equality awareness where both women and men participated in it enthusiastically. Many celebrities helped promote the campaign and helped spread awareness for the cause which again is a forward step to towards a more balanced world. Gender inequality is a perpetual issue that we are facing on a global scale. There are many NGOs working and campaigns and protests being organized to eradicate such inequality and to free women of the atrocities that they have to face day after day. We definitely can see some changes around us but the problem has not been fully solved and there is a lot that still needs to be done. There are women fighting battles each day not just against the rigid gender roles set for them by the society but even against their own families at times. But remember charity begins at home, if you want to bring about a change, start with yourself and the people at your home. If every individual does that, a world will then one day become an invariably better place for women, fulfilling the dream of every true feminist. Find a BUDDY to share all your problems with (even anonymously, if you want) on the FeelJoy Mobile App available for all Android users.  DOWNLOAD THE FEELJOY APP HERE.