SO WHAT IS FEMINISM?
Quite simply, feminism is about all genders having equal rights and opportunities. It’s about respecting diverse women’s experiences, identities, knowledge, and strengths, and striving to empower all women to realize their full rights. It’s about levelling the playing field between genders, and ensuring that diverse women and girls have the same opportunities in life available to boys and men.
Also may have heard the phrases ‘intersectionality’ or ‘intersectional feminism, Intersectional feminism is just about acknowledging the interplay between gender and other forms of discrimination, like race, age, class, socioeconomic status, physical or mental ability, gender or sexual identity, religion, or ethnicity. It isn’t about creating a sliding scale of who is worse off, it’s about learning and understanding the ways that inequality affects women and men, and remembering that we’re all in this together. True equality leaves no one behind. We don’t claim to be authorities on anyone else’s feminism, but to us, acknowledging how different forms of discrimination intersect with and amplify gender-based discrimination is a critical way to ensure all women reap the benefits of women’s rights. But we know all of this So now we find out what feminine or feminism meant to people so I asked some questions from the 17 to 20 age group to know what they think of it.
Q. When did you heard this word feminine or feminism for the first time?
Gauri Sidana – From my mom
Saloni Shrivastava – I heard this on Instagram and what people described to me was that it for giving women the chances they deserve but years later I found it actually meant equality for both men and women. I think most of the people don’t understand what feminism is.
Priya Pandey – I heard about this word in my childhood from my teacher when they told us about feminine and masculine but this feminist thing I heard a few years back.
Aanchal Jain – I heard about that word I guess 3-4 years back.
Rahul Rajpurohit – First i heard this pseudo feminism thing then i got to know about feminism.
Nayan Thakur – When I was in 10th standard.
Q. What do you understand by this word?
Gauri – Steps towards equality in society for everyone irrespective of their genders.
Saloni – Like I said, equality for all. Keeping men n women equal in all sorts of things. That’s what feminism means to me.
Priya – For me, it’s gender equality, it’s a mission whose goal is to achieve global gender equality, but equality means equality, we have to achieve it by uplifting women, that doesn’t mean we have to defame men, everyone should have equal social powers regardless of their gender
Aanchal – Equality for everyone
Rahul – Equality for women
Nayan – Equality
Q. How do you see men and women in society?
Gauri – I see men and women as individuals in a society and as humans rather than as representations of their gender. I think they’re governed more by their brains rather than hormones, or their reproductive organs, which are made pivotal distinction points in society.
Saloni – According to society, Men and women both have certain roles to play. Men bring money to the family, women become a reason for Happiness and keeping the family together but with moving generation this mentality also changed but for very few. Men n women should not be assigned to certain roles. If any man feels to be part of the makeup industry or something that was looked after by women then it should be okay, Similarly, if any woman feels that she should do work in a factory or work in dangerous jobs then it should be okay for her as well.
Priya – I guess we’re still living in a male-dominated society, of course, some women achieved some much it’s their hard work but most women are still viewed as housewives and these numbers increase in remote areas, also I’ve read about domestic violence that if men beat women there are judiciary punishment for that but if the same thing does by women, she gets praise by everyone, So we live in a male-dominated society but still, there is no equality for both.
Aanchal – As their roles I guess, girls have more restrictions than boys, and I saw many opinion videos on youtube where people are saying girls stepping outside the house is the main reason for rapes, I mean, of course, society is male-dominated let see how it goes for the upcoming generation. Also, the mainstream celebrities (female) shows the wrong message of feminism like I saw many celebs saying oh boys are doing this then we’re also gonna do this, oh boys are smoking cigarettes, now we also want to smoke cigarettes, etc.., So I think it’s nonsense.
Rahul – Both are part of society and have their respective roles in society
Nayan – I think both genders have their issues in society and we have to work on that
“Instead of being afraid of having to let go of your seat on the table, ask for more chairs” – Gauri
Q. How did you see society discriminate between men and women on a same job or generally?
Gauri – Society discriminates between men and women generally because they have inherent beliefs and expectations from them based on their gender; mainly because of the gender roles they’ve themselves seen while growing up. Talking about jobs; say a person says a daily wage worker, people are more inclined towards thinking of a male and vice versa when someone says a nurse. Then there’s a whole other spectrum of wage and age discrimination between these genders as well
Saloni – Society still needs time to adjust with equality of both. Women most of the time are Judged for everything whereas men are judged for not completing the imagined job for them. But in certain places, women can be hard-working but people still prefer men. Women’s safety and security become the top reason for this, which is usually put on women themselves when it can put on men to acknowledge their behavior. So yes unwanted discrimination is there in the society which will take so so much time to vanish.
Priya – It’s our ancestors who defined the roles based on genders, men work and women take care of the house, but I believe it’s based on the area like there are places where people are open-minded and women of those places don’t have these typical restrictions and another thing is that people discriminate women based on their physical abilities I’ve seen this in my schooling times, I agree that women don’t have that physical strength naturally as compared to boys, they can achieve it but naturally, it’s not there, still you don’t have rights to discriminate, I mean I’m a national level player in handball, I’ve seen those attitude of boys towards girls in sports
Aanchal – Society discriminates a lot actually if you see, there is so much trauma, girls have to deal with in their life, I believe that’s why everyone tries to give birth to a baby boy, I even saw that people have many girl child just because they are trying for a boy, I never saw someone have many boys because they were trying for a girl. Also, many people invest a lot less in a girls education just because they are saving that money for her marriage, but I didn’t go same as for boys, even I have a problem that if a boy earns money he will give that money to there original parents but if girl earns money she has to give that money to her inlaws, why..!? And one more point that is very big for me.. I’m just not saying this for my house I’m saying it because I observed it everywhere
That girl have pressure on them to learn everything, from cooking to household things like I learned how to make Rotis, in 4th standard and my brother he’s in 11th standard he still doesn’t know the difference between black salt and iodine salt, and some boys do cooking but as there hobbies like my ex
Rahul – It’s because of some boys, I believe the group of some men do this inhuman crime rape then parents of girls got scared, and then they put restriction on them to protect them, and there was a time when discrimination was on its high now it’s almost normal, I have female friends they have their freedom but still there is some work to do
Nayan – Society was discriminating between them, not now I mean there are some few places where people do that otherwise I guess it’s over now, girls getting opportunities and they are in every field, we are in a world which is changing very fast and we’re leaving old stereotypes behind.
“Apparently if people are opened more to basic things, educated moral values and made to understand the importance of respecting individuals, they will automatically start to accept people as they are, removing 80% of the problems of people not being happy with their life” – Saloni
Q. How do you see the judgement part?
Gauri – I think the society nominates itself to judge people without any kind of reason to do so; mainly because they’re afraid of change. It needs to be understood that gender roles are toxic things, not the people defying them. A person should be given the liberty to do whatever they want and your sense of false entitlement should not fringe upon that
Saloni – Such judgments should not exist in the first place but people Are still narrow-minded and they will judge according to the norms set up by the society itself. I try my best to avoid such conversation because there is no sensible explanation for their understandings but when I come across anyone like that I get to learn about the superstitious knowledge they have. So such judgments mean nothing to me and Should not be there.
Priya – Judgement, people judge everyone, they say boys have to be strong, they don’t cry things like that but I believe it depends on an individual like some judge a girl by her clothes and some don’t, So it depends on individual thinking, we can’t change it but also on a individual level we can change those boundation
Aanchal – Judgment… judgment is like new normal of society, everyone does it, later or sooner, I’m from nift Mumbai So there everyone judges each other even girls, and the most common thing on which they judge is clothes, boyfriends and on the no of relationship you have been, The more no of relationship is the scale of how much characterless you are, So yeah it’s normal I think now
Rahul – It’s normal now, everyone judge each other, that’s how nowadays people socialize
Nayan – Judgment, it’s like watching porn, everyone watches it but never accept it and it’ll continue like that
Q. What two thing you want to change in society?
Gauri – The broader thing I want to change about society (with respect to gender discrimination) is the underlying patriarchy, matriarchy, misogyny, misandry, homophobia, etc. as a whole; but I also want to change the perception of pseudo-feminism as actual feminism. This is mainly because pseudo-feminists attack people and ideals which might be morally sound, (which is completely immoral), making the receivers go on a defensive stance and them both forgetting what their main agenda was gender equality
Saloni – Reservation System and discrimination based on everything: People now need to understand that reservation system rules need to change. Some belonging to SC/ST, OBC caste are rich but still take the privilege of the reservation system. Some general category people are belonging to poor families and they struggle more with such system. It should now be about poor n rich people. Discrimination is an easy thing to do. Often done based on gender, religion, and caste. Society sets some standards for each and they judge and accuse people on the same.
Priya – I’ll do women empowerment for sure, I mean countries and societies future depend upon them, and also want to end this pseudo feminism thing, which creates a social division, people who are fighting for women they should also take stand for Mens these step actually helps both the gender to understand other parties better or maybe this could lead us to a societal reform, but yeah groups who are taking stand for women they should also run a campaign for men’s and work for humanity
Aanchal – This difference between gender and Some things from the fashion industry, of course, I have to talk about them because I’m from the fashion side, Behind this glamour world, they are doing major harm to our natural resources like water and many things yeah these two things.
Rahul – First of all these rapes and secondly these fake allegations on innocent people
Nayan – I would change the procedure of judiciary and make them fast So that justice got serve on time and change our religion Politics with real issues.
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