Tag Archive for: #MeToo

“#MeToo: Keeping silent v/s staying woke” in TOI Blogs

Legend it that the fate of truth and lie was irrevocably met with, on one fine day.

The lie says to the truth, “It’s a marvellous day today!”

Truth looks up to the skies and sighs, for the day was really beautiful.

They spend a lot of time together, ultimately arriving beside a well.

The lie tells the truth: “The water is very nice let’s take a bath together!”

The truth tests the water and discovers that it indeed is very nice.

They undress and start bathing. Suddenly the Lie comes out of the water, puts on the clothes of truth and runs away. The furious truth comes out of the water and runs everywhere to find the lie and get her clothes back.

The world, seeing the truth naked; turns its gaze away, with contempt and rage. The poor truth returns to the well and disappears forever, hiding therein, its shame.

Since then the lie travels the world dressed as truth, satisfying the needs of the society, because the World in any case, harbours no wish at all to meet the naked truth. (excerpt taken from The Speaking Tree)

In the light of the #MeToo movement that has taken the nation by storm, truth and lie have become the two most talked of participants. Anyone who has seen Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon would understand how truth is a VIBGYOR and each colour has a story to tell. The allegations seem to be just about as complex. However, just the fear of false allegations should not hold us back, from instilling the fear of crime abetted. The crime of violating consent, misconduct, gangrapes are the most heinous and deserve to be brought to book at all costs.

Karl Marx and his sympathisers relegated women to the second or the lesser sphere and believed that in the scheme of things, women must become forbearers of this lesser sphere. They were to do their duty diligently and produce a score of children (read men) who would then go on to build an indestructible workforce or at least a Reserve Army. However convenient the explanation seemed for years gone by, women’s role in the society has transcended the sphere of being a child making factory. The new age workforce is a slap on the face of misogynistic societies. A transition is actively shaping up and therefore causing inconvenience to years of imbalanced power rhetoric. Women have come to occupy important roles in a plethora of professional spheres and are comfortably outdoing the age-old stereotypes.

The #MeToo movement is rather revolutionary as it hits the bull’s eye. For the first time in so long, more and more women are using the social media as a platform to unveil years of hidden trauma and hopelessness. We have lived in a society where the rich got away with most of the crimes, that the others had to inevitably bear the consequences of. It is ironical that it isn’t the justice system that is making people come forth and unleash their complaints, but rather social media, that has mostly been an inconvenient mirror to the society. This movement is making the society and its hierarchy of power and gender politics stand on their head.

Some men have apologised, some resigned, some are defiant and in turn have called it a reversed witch-hunt. A lot of men seem to sympathise with the alleged, calling women, sympathy seekers, drama queens and the sorts. Truth be told, these are the kind of reactions which strengthen our resolute in the fight against sexual assaults. Victim shaming has been the most played out card in history; unfortunately, it is no longer going to stub voices. The #MeToo movement has indeed given voice to the voiceless; power to the powerless.

Why is now the right time, you ask.

When an ambulance with an all-powerful siren, streams through the roads unhindered and yet reaches the hospital late, it comes under scanners. Not just the ambulance driver, traffic police, people’s civic sense, road structure, you name it and an avalanche of probabilistic reasons ascend.

Why then do we show apathy to justice delayed and often denied, when it comes to women survivors of rape and misconduct. After all, isn’t the physical, mental, and psychological health of women just as important, if not more?

Instead of questioning why women are opening up now and that too to social media, a gracious society would thank them for coming forth. However, media trials are only a channel for those who had their hands tied. Media trials do not constitute as a legal course of action.

It would be laughable to assume that these women coming out on social media are unaware of the same. It is taught in 8th standard school textbooks, that an FIR must be filed and in case it is not registered by the police, then one can approach the Magistrate. However robust our legal justice system is, as evident, it is inadequate in registering cases thus filed. The culture of inherent male chauvinism, victim shaming, abuse of power has made filing FIRs a lot more cumbersome. A responsible society must come forth to nip the issue in the bud. It begins with accepting that there is a web of entrenched issues to deal with.

The government of India has made it mandatory for every employer to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC). Ministry of women and child development dedicated a portal of ‘She-Box’ where women can submit complaints. These proactive measures are certain outlets apart from filing an FIR.

It becomes all the more relevant now, to question whether it is indeed time for gender sensitisation courses to start at school level. For one, it is the role of the stakeholders to look into the crux of the problem. And we are all stakeholders in this society, parents, school teachers, social media influencers, advertisements, movies, government, corporate houses, professional office spaces, are each to follow a role set that makes them responsible citizens of the society.

Let us stop normalising errant behaviour, let us stop casually airing “Men will be Men” across TV and in everyday conversations. It is rightly said, “Spare the rod, and spoil the child” If parents and teachers do not step up and mould children right from their youth, it is likely that they would become deviant from the norms of the society. They often inculcate vices, growing up; transitioning from unchecked youth to belligerent adults.

This is a war against apathy, misogyny, chauvinism; it is not a war between men and women, it is not about Bollywood v/s Hollywood. The sooner we understand this, the sooner we become ‘Woke’. Let us all aim for ‘Justice sans Frontiers’.