Editor,
Every time there is an incident of violence against women in India, our entire consciousness is shocked. We don’t believe that these shocking incidents can happen and we want change. But what stops it? Why is it that violence against women keeps on happening?
We have talked a lot about this issue. There have been a lot of discussions/debates about hanging the rapists. But is it just a legal problem? All our discussions are about retribution. We want retribution against those who have perpetrated these horrendous crimes. But is this crime just a crime that exists in isolation? Or is it a problem of our society’s psychology?
It is a spectrum of psychological issues, a polluted mind, a society that has been polluted with the idea of hypersexualization and over-objectification of women. It is a structural problem that exists on a spectrum. At the end of that spectrum, the biggest problem is rape. But what is it that is polluting the mind of society? We need to change our social psychology and we need to change how we look at women.
When men are in powerful positions, they tend to exploit women. Recently, the Hema Committee report talked about the exploitation of women in Kerala cinema. It is a well-documented fact that there was sexual exploitation there. Casting couch was a very normal practice and women were exploited to get normal roles in the industry.
There is a research which shows that 50% of young Indian men believe that if women are wearing short clothes, they are inviting rape. Pure research has shown that 34% of Indian husbands believe that they have the right to beat up their wife for whatever reason.
Why is this problem? We think about women in the same way that society shows us women. Our thoughts about women are shaped by our determinants of psychology. We talk about social media which has evolved our emotions. Social media create a perception and men start to believe that this is the reality. This is not the reality. Women are much more than what you see on social media or Bollywood movies.
When we don’t treat them with respect, when we objectify them, when we hypersexualize them, we are creating a culture where violence against women is possible. The threat of rape is a reality that could affect anyone, including your family and friends. So, the problem is not just about the rapists. The problem is about our society’s psychology, our societal structures and our cultural norms.
We must undergo a fundamental societal shift, and we need to change our societal structures. We need to make sure that women have equal opportunities. We need to make sure that they are safe in public places. We need to make sure that they are not discriminated against.
And we need to change our cultural norms. We need to stop tolerating violence against women. We need to start speaking out against it. We need to start holding perpetrators accountable.
If we do all of these things, we can create a society where women are safe and respected.
K Riba