Feminisim is more about humanity than gender
We are humans and that is what matters.
When I hear the word ‘feminist’ it unfortunately conjures images of angry women chanting anti-male slogans. However, times have changed and the feminists of today have imbibed a modern flavour to it. Modern-day feminists are a breed of their own, they do not believe that women deserve special privileges, and they no longer play the victim card. But to be a feminist, you have to agree on one simple baseline, which hasn’t quite changed over the years: men and women are created equal and should enjoy the same political, economic and social rights. Being a feminist doesn’t have anything to do with the way you look or what you wear, it only emphasises on equal rights and female empowerment in the society at large. Empowering women has nothing to do with belittling men. We very well know that men too suffer from gender role assumptions and sometimes can’t meet with the societal expectations meted out to them. The emphasis of modern day feminism must be to treat each human being based on capabilities and strengths rather than based on their gender.
It is also true that many people consider feminism as a thing of the past, and ask the common rhetorical question: “Do we still need feminism in this day and age?” Well, the answer would be a resounding yes. We still need feminism because in many parts of the world we have female foeticide and infanticide so that girls can be “done away with”. We still need feminism because we would teach women self-defence instead of teaching people not to view women as objects. We still need feminism because when a woman is assaulted, it is often she who feels ashamed and is meant to be at fault. We still need feminism because men and women are not paid the same salary for the exact same work they do. I do realise that women can speak for themselves without the “feminist” tag, but we need to give voice to the many who are still voiceless and suffer in silence.
Feminism shouldn’t just be boxed as a gender issue, it is essentially a humanitarian issue. Feminism is not telling what women should be doing, instead it is accepting a person for who she is and having the freedom and the ability to do what she chooses to do whether it be a stay-at-home mother or the CEO of a global corporation. If you are a feminist, you believe that women should be treated the same as men, not because we are better, but because we are human.
— The reader is an Indian business development manager based in Ajman
