Article

Women Empowerment in the 21st Century

It feels strange that we have something called “women empowerment” but we don’t have an equivalent of this for men. This proves that women are not as empowered as men, and it shows anywhere and everywhere you lay your eyes on.

Author: Sreejita Karmakar

Introduction

It feels strange that we have something called “women empowerment” but we don’t have an equivalent of this for men. This proves that women are not as empowered as men, and it shows anywhere and everywhere you lay your eyes on. In some workplaces, women are still not given equal pay as men, when both have the same qualifications and are doing the same work. The hilarious fact is we are living in the 21st century and gender inequality is still prevalent. I have seen the female office goers of my family suffer from this. 

So what exactly is women empowerment? The definition says that it is a process of empowering women which may be defined in several ways, including accepting women’s viewpoints and opinions or making an effort to seek them, raising the status of women through education, awareness, literacy, and training.

Quite heavy isn’t it? Many people already know what women’s empowerment is. But how many people contribute towards it?

Women in Today’s Society

The condition of women in today’s society is a little better than it was just a few decades ago and I, being a woman myself, am heartily grateful for it. But there are still a few women who are mistreated and are expected to cook, clean, birth, and raise children, keep a household happy, and wither and die when the time comes. They die with their dreams and ambitions buried in their hearts, with hopes which are never fulfilled. Nobody ever asks them what they want in life or if they are happy with what they have.

I have seen my grandmother and she is one of the most hardworking women I know. She toils from morning to night – all day, every day – for as long as I have known her; which is, my whole life. She cooks for us, helps us find our clothes when we are in a hurry, takes care of us when we fall sick, and asks for nothing in return. I see my mother go to work every day and come home in the evening. By the time we sit together to chat, she gets so tired that we cut our time short so that she can relax. When I look at them, I ask myself, “Do they have unfulfilled dreams too? Dreams they kept aside to look after our family?” And I know they do. Who doesn’t have dreams? I would feel terrible if my dreams were not to come true. 

But considering that worse things are happening to people around us, I assume there are so many others who don’t even have decent jobs but have many mouths to feed at home. Some such families marry off their daughters because they are unable to take their burden, some daughters migrate to cities or places where work is available so that they can send money back home. But what about their dreams?

Why do We Need Women Empowerment?

In some families, women are not allowed to take up jobs to support the family. Some are not even allowed to study properly. Some are not given preference enough because they have brothers who get most of the love, proper education and are considered more important. Some women aren’t allowed to stay far away from home while others cannot stay out till late at night (at least not without feeling unsafe). So many rules and regulations to follow. And all of them for women. 

In the book, ‘A Room of One’s Own’ by Virginia Woolf, a question is raised by the author. She asks, what if William Shakespeare had a sister who was equally talented as him? And through reasoning, she answers her own question by saying the sister would never get to show her real talent because of the lack of chances given to women compared to men. Throughout the book, Woolf talks about how women are oppressed and looked down upon by society and men in general. Men used to be wife-beat and if they refused to marry their picked husbands, they would get beaten by their fathers. 

People will say that was then, this is now, but are we going to overlook the fact that whatever Woolf had written in her book holds true to this day. Women are still abused by their family members. Their talents are ignored and their dreams are not talked about. Of course, not all women face this. Not everyone has an abusive family, but that does not eliminate the number of women who do face this, and that too, regularly. 

All these are the reasons why we need women’s empowerment. And unfortunately, women still have not completely won this fight. Woolf made me think so much after I had finished reading the book. She made me look around and realize many women are suffering to this day. While I am blessed enough to sit here and type this article on women empowerment, some women are probably being abused right now. It pains me to think of their struggle.

How To Empower Women?

Thankfully, women are getting the support they deserve, even if it is taking some time to reach everywhere. Today, women not only study abroad but also run their own companies. This is the change we have to bring on a larger scale throughout the world. But we should take small steps to reach the goal someday; like creating safe workplaces for women, educating women so that the economy of the country gets a boost, giving proper training to women to teach them job skills, raising voice against gender discrimination, creating more part-time job opportunities as in India most women are housewives.

Many important women empowerment schemes have been started in India like: 

1) Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Scheme, to prevent gender-biased sex selective elimination, to ensure survival, protection, and education of the girl-child.  

2) One-Stop Centre Scheme, to support and assist women affected by violence, both in private and public spaces. To provide psycho-social support and counseling to women and girls.

3) Working Women Hostel, to promote the availability of safe and conveniently located accommodation for women. To provide accommodation to children of working women. 

Many more such schemes to stop the sex trafficking of women and to cater to the primary need of food, shelter, clothing, etc. have been started by the Government of India.

Conclusion

Truth is, today the women of India are doing brilliantly in every field, just like men. Many organizations still do not pay their male and female workers equally, even if they are doing the same job, for the same amount of time, in the same environment, with equal qualifications. If we do not spread awareness about this injustice to women, things will take a longer time to change. We have to raise voice against such inequity. Hopefully, a day will come when women will stand so equal to men that we would not have to ask for “women empowerment” particularly. 

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