As the Weinstein case unfolded, women all over the world stepped forward to speak. As they did, the world was taken aback by both the magnitude and the gravity of the offenses committed. Whether it was the revelation of licentiousness in the men-only charity dinner in London by a Financial Times journalist or Bill Cosby’s sexual assaults –this is a global phenomenon. What makes it more deplorable is the fact that many men – even supposedly educated ones –have spurned women’s claims without any consideration. In this country, it’s as if most men are oblivious to the existence of the patriarchy at home and the rest of the world.
This is not just a social issue. The implications go much further, into the realm of economy and progress. In a recent article, former Chief Economist at World BankKaushak Basu writes, “women’s empowerment” is one of the main reasons that Bangladesh has “gone from one of the Asia’s poorest countries to a ‘tiger’ economy”.
A nuanced sense of superiority still adulterates the minds of men. The way they express this might have changed, but the essence remains the same. Whether it is Pakistan or anywhere else in the world, men suffer from this illusion.This article might be hard to stomach for some of these boys. But — as the adage goes –there is a reason we call it the “bitter truth”.
I always stress upon the significance of the human brain. They say it has millions of neural connections, they say its power is peerless. Its product, known as thought, mind-set, approach, view, perspective and several other words, has shaped this world of ours. It is the mind-set created by the human brain that is responsible of all the goods and all the evils in the world. One may refer to Rana Sanaullah’s comments regarding the ‘character’ of women attending PTI’s Lahore rally. Sanaullah’s comments were but a manifestation of a certain mind-set that is all too common in Pakistani society. Here, I would make it clear to not to choose any label from the current palette of which the internet is replete. It is important, in this din of virtual altercations and arguments, to retain one’s mind, senses and logic. And it is this logic that compels us to think that what it is that justifies our behaviour with our spouses, sisters, and mothers?
It is my observation that many of the ‘alpha-males’ in our society, who enjoy the terror (mistaken as reverence) that they think their personality emanates whilst at home, the kind of men who boast to their friends about the absolute control they are able to exercise over their wives,are actually delusional and insecure.
Many of the ‘alpha-males’ in our society — who enjoy the terror (mistaken as reverence) that they think their personality emanates whilst at home – are actually insecure
Coming back to mind-set,on an almost daily basis, many of us have arguments in the virtual and the real world about women’s rights. It is unfortunate that many people still haven’t been able to accept women as equals. There is no psychological, sociological or biological reason for us to be so averse to the idea of the sexes being equal. We are all human, and women have the same mind and soul as men.
If we see a woman riding a bike, the look in their (men) eyes suggests that they have witnessed something unnatural and unconceivable. What is unnatural about it? Nothing but our own perverted mind-set. We can see women walking in a hastily, showing a certain sense of fear, their head thrown down, as if evading predators. Why such haste? Unfortunately, there are predators all around.
There is much that needs to change. The time when that girl will walk confidently and with ease without fear on that sideway while coming back from her office or university; the time when the sight of women straddling a bike will not raise any eyebrows, the time when women will not snubbed as unintelligent beings, the time when you and I will think that we do not have any divine, natural or social superiority over womankind. That is when we as a nation and a society will progress in the true sense of the word.
The writer is a student of International Relations with interest in International Political Economy. He can be reached at [email protected]
Published in Daily Times, May 5th 2018.