Empowering Women Against Violence
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 …
“A married woman has the same right to control her own body as does an unmarried woman” Rape is never an easy topic to talk about. We are talking about a violation of a human being’s body, trust, emotions, sanity, and confidence by another human. It seems unthinkable when you put it that way, no? Unfortunately, marital rape exists in most …
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, …
The Widespread Nature of Violence Against Women (VAW) Before I begin, I’d like to give a couple of disclaimers. If any readers are sensitive to the discussion about sexual trauma, please read with caution. This blog post outlines the prominence of VAW in several areas of life, which may induce anxiety for certain people. Additionally, I would like to disclose …
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 …
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 …
Human Trafficking in India produces invisible victims that hide in plain sight! As I was strolling down Calcutta’s streets, I stumbled upon the above graffiti. Usually, a typical Calcutta graffiti is about a political organisation. Comically, a few centimetres away from one political graffiti, is that of an opposing political group. So naturally, in the sea of politics, my eyes caught sight …
Human Trafficking in India produces invisible victims that hide in plain sight! As I was strolling down Calcutta’s streets, I stumbled upon the above graffiti. Usually, a typical Calcutta graffiti is about a political organisation. Comically, a few centimetres away from one political graffiti, is that of an opposing political group. So naturally, in the sea of politics, my eyes caught sight …
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 …
Rape is a controversial topic. Especially so in India, which has experienced several horrific and high profile cases in recent years. Such cases include that of a gang rape of a 23-year-old student on a public bus in Delhi in 2012. This case and subsequent ones prompted a revision of sections in Indian law that deal with rape and sexual …