=

Today, I decided to write about feminism. I believe it's highly misunderstood by (most) men as "Women fighting to be treated as the superior gender." But, it's not. I might get negative criticism from people on this post but I am going to go ahead and write whatever I feel about this movement which is going on for a really really long time.

Feminism is exactly what the dictionary meaning says it is. It is : the movement for social, political, and economic equality of men and women. Nowhere has it been mentioned that Men > Women or vice versa. Survey suggests that 67% of the people agree with this definition. But I think we would all agree that in this *still* patriarchal society, women do get less credit than they deserve. I like to think of feminism as something that allows a woman to make informed choices about her own life without the intervention of other people. The woman may be American, Latina, Asian, Lesbian, African, etc, etc. It doesn't matter. Because when you talk about women, you're talking about half of the population in the world. That's a rough 3.5 billion humans all around the world. 

I believe women come to feminism through their own experiences. Maybe they didn't think they'd need it before a particular point in life. The term as I said, represents a hell lot of diversity. Suppose a woman sees her male counterparts are getting paid more than her when she is putting in the same amount of work as them, suppose a woman is in an abusive relationship decides that she's had enough, suppose a woman wants to start her own business and needs credit. All of this, though differently, are a part of the same movement. 

I'll give you my example.When I tell people I like reading up on technical stuff, they just look at me like I'm some kind of a third world species. I don't see why they should? Like I'm a human being and I might enjoy certain things that you don't. To each his own, you know. I understand boys face the "Omg you like dancing/painting?" and they might get the awkward look. But you know what, that is what feminism plans on eradicating. The entire movement bases upon giving equal rights to every human being and allow them to live their life the way they want to, without others giving a whole load of opinions. Some women like makeup, some men like makeup, some women like sweatpants, some men like dressing up neatly, but you know what all men and women like? Being successful, feeling equal and having the right to live life the way they want to.

Also, how many female prime ministers has India had since independence? Now, How many male prime ministers?Why doesn't the nation vote for a female to be PM  as much as they vote for the male? Why aren't there more females in the parliament when obviously we've seen all kinds of shenanigans the males have pulled off? Why aren't women encouraged to be a part of the Indian politics more? I could go on with a list of all these questions, but I hope you get the whole point. 

Another story, a married couple go the office everyday, both of them work for an equal amount of time and have the same work, but the husband gets paid more than the wife. They come home, the  husband sits with a beer bottle in front of the TV enjoying a game of cricket or football and the wife goes on to buy groceries, make dinner, put the kids to sleep, etc. They have dinner and well go off to sleep. The wife thinks about how she definitely works more than her husband but unfortunately her work done at home goes unaccounted for, because working for free is just so much fun, isn't it? She decides to then go  and speak to her manager for a salary rise and that's when her part in the feminist movement begins. Nowhere did I mention that the husband can't be a part of this movement too.  If he wants to he can help his wife at home, or he can ask the boss to give his wife a raise because he realizes she works as much as he does. 

I'm gonna leave this post with a picture, that may keep you thinking for a while.  

Decide for yourselves.