As I sat in one of Uganda’s most prestigious universities with my multi-cultural co-workers trying to raise awareness about women’s reproductive health, I had the most cringe-worthy moment of my life. As we answered questions about how condoms and religion don’t agree with each other, a guy in his mid-20s told us we should talk to the women exclusively. When …
Tag: objectification of women
Feminism In India
Every year for international women’s day, WhatsApp is flooded with forwarding messages about women. Their importance, their achievements, and an ever long reasons for them to be celebrated. One said, “A beautiful woman draws strength from troubles, smiled during distress and grown stronger with prayers and hope. You are one of them. Wishing you a very Happy Women’s day.” …
The Informal Justice System, Panchayat
A few weeks ago, one of Times of India’s headlines read, “UP woman tied up, thrashed on panchayat’s order; molested”. I received this video as a part of a forward message thread. Amongst these angry and reasonably reacting people were people, who supported the panchayat’s decision. They wanted everyone to honor the decision of a panchayat since this sort of …
Shut Up Or Be Shamed
India is a diverse country and full of contradictions. On one side we have a long history of influential women leaders while on the other, girls and women are asked to dress in a certain way to not entice men into raping them. Women are sacred only for as long as they follow a prescribed outline of how to look, …
Why Our Language Makes a Difference
The words and phrases we use matter. The meaning and context of what we say, never mind the spoken language, affects people, directly and indirectly. It shapes how kids think, making a lasting impact on people’s thoughts and opinions of themselves and the world as a whole. During the World War 1, governments recruited unwilling men and women to the army …
Harassment against women – what Harvey Weinstein case has taught us
If you have been keeping up with the news, you will not be a stranger to the case of Harvey Weinstein. Due to this, allegations of sexual abuse and assault have been coming out against him since the 5th October this year. Women such as Rose McGowan and Angelina Jolie have spoken up with claims of abuse and harassment. As …
#ToTheGirls – Positivity from the older generation of women
The last article of the #HashtagTrilogy aims to finish on a more positive note. Therefore in this article, I’ll be focusing on the hashtag #ToTheGirls. What is the #ToTheGirls hashtag? The hashtag #ToTheGirls was started in April 2015 by author Courtney Summers. It allows older women to impart positive advice and encouragement to younger girls struggling with the myriad of …
Objectification and Sexism in Bollywood – The Bollywood Diva Song
Soon the viral video ‘The Bollywood Diva Song’ starring Kangana Ranaut was released, the video gained widespread attention for a number of different reasons. And one of them was the highlighting of the rampant sexism and objectification in Bollywood. Let’s discuss this in the context of the video briefly. The whole mock dance number shows the stereotypical way in which female …
#AintNoCinderella – Exposing the patriarchal mindset against women
What is the #AintnoCinderella hashtag? The hashtag became viral in early August due to an online victim-shaming incident in which BJP politician Ramveer Bhatti blamed a victim of assault – Varnika Kundu – for an ordeal in which she was chased by two men and almost kidnapped. After posting her ordeal, Bhatti found it necessary to comment that Ms. Kundu …
UnfairandLovely – the importance for women to get behind this hashtag!
For years, the push of white western beauty standards means that fair skin is entrenched as the beauty ideal in many countries across the world – particularly in India. This has led to the launch of numerous products such as skin lightening pills and creams, offering to make user ‘more attractive’. Adverts imply that having lighter skin will make you more attractive …