What better time than Diwali, the festival of Lights, to open a can of worms and throw light on sexual abuse – matters, which are swept under the rug? Incidentally, just around the corner of Diwali; a MeToo tweet by actress Alyssa Milano which was in the wake of Harvey Weinstein’s sexual controversy, evoked a wave of reactions and revelations by multitudes world over. From actors and stand-up comics to teenagers and young work professionals, a volley of citizens chose to be a part of the MeToo campaign, which raises awareness about sexual assault, in hopes of encouraging more people to stand up and speak out. We take a deeper look...
“I’ve lost count of how many times me and women I know have been sexually harassed/assaulted. And yet, the onus is placed on women to ‘be careful’ and follow a list of do’s and don’t to ‘not get molested/raped’ by experts and so called ‘educated folk’ you see,” begins Namita Kulkarni, a city based yoga practitioner. While speaking up is the need of the hour, Kulkarni asserts how it is a futile pursuit unless you seek help from professional sources. “It could feel great to pour your heart out to a loved one. But, what is more important is to approach someone who can help you out. This is essential because we live in a patriarchy which has conveniently normalised misogyny and female objectification. No wonder marital rape is not even a crime in India,” she says.
Madhavi Jadhav, a young city entrepreneur who runs SEXpert, a free online portal which educates youngsters on safe sex for free, adds it is important to create noise irrespective of whether you have experienced it or not.” I think it is plain absurd to see how some people dont post the status as they haven’t been a part of this. The question is not about being a part or not, but about understanding the magnitude of problem and inculcating fear in the minds of the wrong doers by standing as a team with people who have been silent victims for long. Irrespective of whether you have experienced an ugly side of abuse or not, post this as part of your responsibility. ”
The idea however is not about blindly following the crowd asserts professor Priyanka PV “Sympathy that disturbs you enough to change your profile picture or use a new HashTag is just superficial. What we really need is some real world action. Will this fad trigger such a trend? I don’t think so but I wish I’m wrong.”
