In my project, I wish to highlight the gender inequality issues from global to national perspective, through the lenses of my home country India. Also, I will be detailing my personal views of the same issue.
Is Gender inequality, the prime reality of women’s life? This is the question I asked myself several times in past. Though I never got an answer to it or fully understood the depths of the beliefs, I felt strongly about the subject as I was growing up in a family with my older sister.
Though God may have created man and woman equally, but based on each other’s strengths, when they divided the responsibilities, man took the role of working outside the house and women assumed the role of a homemaker. Over the centuries, this responsibility division may have mischaracterized the women as incapable.
Though several studies and steps have been undertaken to ensure that gender equality prevails, but still a large population of women are still untouched by its benefits. Through my study, I aim to shine some light, which can help to increase the awareness among the readers by exploring issues from global perspectives, national perspectives (coming from home country India) and also sharing my personal perspectives and experiences about the issue of gender inequality.
Increased awareness can be the first step towards a change, which can eventually remove ignorance.
Issues
I believe that the fight against gender inequality is an on-going struggle. Through my project, I want to focus on the three main issues, which I believe are widely responsible for the causes and consequence of gender inequality in women’s life. They are:
- Lack of education
- Mental and sexual harassment
- Job discrimination
Lack Of Education
According to Their world, which is a registered charitable non-profit organization founded in 2002 that works with Governments, NGO’s and multiple businesses, Limited education leads to limited earnings for individuals in these areas. When the family has limited earnings, then it becomes a challenge to bear the costs of education like school fees, clothing, shoes, books and supplies etc. A huge majority of people living in these countries are able to eat three meals per day and plus worry about visiting school or learning the way to read and write .
Alarmingly low literacy rate among ladies from Bharat, West Pakistan and Federal Republic of Nigeria is attributed to the social difference that they’re experiencing. Women generally receive less education in these countries with their roles still majorly given secondary importance. If a choice must be made between sending a boy or girl to school, usually girls end up leaving school to work at home or in field and this cycle continues in most places.
As a young girl, Mala Yousafzai who is a noble peace prize winner in 2014 was shot in head by a Taliban when she demanded that girls must be allowed to receive an education.
When I visited my grandmother’s village, I was shocked to find the same superstitious beliefs among the locals that its not good for girls to study beyond a certain age. Once married, most of the time girls eventually end up dropping off from school.
Also, in many parts of world, girls who are pregnant are excluded from school. They do not return after giving birth as childcare will be needed. Uneducated parents are unable to provide an environment in the house where girls can believe that there are not inferior to boys in any way. More they accept it, more they become the victims unknowingly.
This issue can only be overcome by increasing awareness about the importance of education to the parents. Also, Government can play their role by taking the example of Canada to provide financial help or scholarship for sending girl children to school and enforcing equal education by cutting down the benefits of those families where girl child is not enrolled in school. This responsibility needs to be undertaken at all levels starting with Sarpanch in the village, Mandal and District office and at state and country level, human rights organizations at a global level.
Mental And Sexual Harassment
The second major issue that I see women face today is mental and sexual harassment. Mental and sexual harassment can be described as discriminating someone based on sex, marital relationship or family responsibilities.
The most important factor that causes mental and sexual harassment is the male self-perception that women have no control over. Women may be weaker in physical strength as their bodies are built differently. Some men take it as an advantage to harass them as they think that they can win over them.
Our country has most recently witnessed a diabolical human act of 4 men raping and burning a veterinary doctor, Disha. This is what exactly happened in 2012 Delhi Gang rape also known as Nirbhaya case where a 23-year-old Physiotherapy intern was raped in a private bus by 6 men.
The same repeated in Kathua rape case where 8-year-old girl named Asifa Bano was abducted, raped and murdered in Jammu and Kashmir. The crimes committed for these kinds of sexual reasons is brutal to say the least, but it also mirrors the position of the country in providing safety to women for being women.
I feel this is a violation of human right and government should address it in a multi faced approach. First and foremost, the accused nee be hanged to death publicly which will instill fear in the minds of those who may even think about committing these kinds of acts in the future. Second, the education system needs to be updated to include the overall moral development of the students starting from very early age.
Lastly, as a precaution, government should not only promote awareness among women to use 100 number but freely supply pepper sprays to use in an emergency to reduce the likelihood of these extreme events from happening.
