It was in September 2015, when the Pembilai Orumai protests of Munnar (Kerala) women tea workers moved me to pen down a poem about the grit and courage to rebel against the oppressive structures. It was an organized protest and strike which made the capitalist powers bow down to the Dalit, underclass women workers seeking their fair labour rights. They asked men to stay out. And then, that was not the sole one. Enough was enough.
I believe it’s been a decade of women. Be it through phenomenal films or women-led movements, demonstrations, protests, and collective actions, not only for their human rights but for larger issues concerning society, for the environment, against discriminatory laws, against the harassment and abuse and so on . Especially in the socially conservative developing societies and economies, like the Asian ones.
Yes, the story began way back in the second decade of the 20th century, when women in the West fought for their rights as equal citizens. At the same time, Mahatama Gandhi’s clarion call brought women in India to the public spaces, hitherto confined to household lives. But it was in the mid-1870s when the feminist movement came to the front. Social evils like dowry, Sati, and domestic violence were the immediate triggers but it was a larger battle for legal, political, and social rights.
It brought changes in laws and turned women themselves into a powerful force despite shackles. It’s been a long journey since then, with new and old woes and patriarchal persistence, still persistent. However, the means, the modes, and organization, all have adapted, changed, and fine-tuned into a balanced yet adamant on-ground collective action. Social media has catalyzed and mobilized these movements too. Illiterate or literate, teenage, young, or elderly, women are at the helm of movements, at times, leaderless and apolitical in affiliation.
So let’s delve into the ‘new’ stories of grit, organization, and courage shown by these women mostly in the last few decades. The stories where Munnar women workers have had their thousands of unmet unseen ‘friends’ shattering the barriers particularly in these conservative parts of the world in various ways, voices, and for various concerns.
The Women Of Shaheen Bagh
Coming out of religious patriarchal structures, and led by Muslim women of a middle-class neighbourhood in Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh, the Shaheen Bagh protest was triggered by the images of alleged police barbarism in Jamia Millia Islamia and an iconic young girl ‘protecting’ the male fellow protesters from lathis wielding police officers.
‘Jamia ki ladkiyaan’ was the spark that made these women ‘visible ‘ from their veils of invisibleness. The three dadis, the poster girls of Shaheen Bagh’s anti-citizenship amendment act protests, were ‘Naari Shakti’ epitomized. Zafar Aga, editor of an Urdu Newspaper calls this a change for Muslim women, not unfolded overnight.
These women blew a bugle of resistance and inspired many such women-steered protests, especially the Muslim women, across the country. Only the recent lockdown orders could make the administration budge from the site. The non-violent protesting women kept themselves organized, strategic and glued to their demand for they knew their fears might be a reality soon for their families. Historian Mridula Mukherjee rightly opines that these women are getting empowered indirectly, in the process.
The Nirbhaya Movement
Nirbhaya and the Indian women’s fight against sexual harassment and patriarchy India saw a nationwide outrage to get justice for a paramedic student 23-year-old woman, called as ‘Nirbhaya ‘. Many women, non-governmental organizations, and common people gathered at national iconic places like Jantar Mantar and India gate. Across the country, local institutions, political groups, and women, more prominently came out on the streets.
Probably, it was the Nirbhaya incident that awakened the hibernating collective conscience. This book in one of its case studies discusses how for the first time, ICT, through social media, mobile phones were used extensively, to mobilize, to vent out anger and agony of years of suppression for many women. This movement became symbolic of the gender movement in the ‘Shining India’ narrative.
The government constituted the Justice Verma committee for reforms in legal frameworks for anti-sexual harassment and rape laws. Despite Vishakha Guidelines by the Supreme court, it was only in 2013, Criminal law was amended. Grave provisions followed for juvenile delinquents too on popular demand in the other law for Juvenile justice.
Nirbhaya movement was not a single leader movement but it had many women activists like Yogita Bhayana and Seema Kushwaha at the helm. The latter recently finished her chase of justice along with Nirbhaya’s parents when the guilty were hanged to death. She was a student activist in the 2013 protests. Nirbhaya movement became the turning point, not for the crimes against women, but the awareness, increased reporting, stringent laws, and diverse definitions like stalking, voyeurism, etc. However, the real change is still far away with far too brutal crimes against women are committed with impunity.
The Me Too Movement
It was largely urban activism, unified for a social change. What Tarana Burke began in 2006, Tanushree Dutta did for India in 2018. However, it was Raya Sarkar who first published a list of alleged sexual harassers in the garb of prominent academicians, almost a year ago. Later in 2018, a spate of stories began to come from women of almost all walks, but the movement stayed online rather than offline and on the ground.
Many survivors were asked to file legal cases but looking at the laggard justice delivery system, not much could be realized. However, the achievement of the movement was in making many women from academia, entertainment, and the corporate world come out and find solace in community healing.
Changes have been brought about in the corporate environment and reportage growth in sexual harassment at the workplace, though not so deeper and extensive. Having said that, there has been a distinct class narrative to the #MeToo movement in India.
“It is elite, upper class, empowered, and financially independent women who are coming forward. For the lower class, rural, uneducated, and disempowered women, the #The MeToo movement provides a little safeguard from daily abuse and harassment.” Also, the larger goal of battling gender-violence has been largely unmet. Perhaps the demonization of perpetrators is not enough. It’s the demonized and normalized patriarchal selves that need to be attacked on.
Pakistan’s Aurat March
In March 2019, Pakistan’s Aurat March saw women from all walks, ethnicities, and sections of society raise their voice for justice, freedom, and dignity. They demanded safety and better working conditions. Transgender and queers; Homemakers and professionals; Even many Men and Boys came together. Aurat March was different from the feminist movement in Pakistan in the 1980s in issues, diversity, and spread.
Anti-Liquor Movement: By The Women Of Bihar And Karnataka.
We also need to talk about women’s anti-liquor movements in Bihar and Karnataka. Women are the most affected sections, especially from alcoholism-induced domestic violence. In Bihar, they succeeded in bringing a prohibition on alcohol. Women and government statistics reflect a downturn in alcoholism induced crimes and oppression by drunken men.
However, this comprehensive insightful piece takes you to the fallouts of prohibition like an expensive and illicit country made liquor still persistent and overcrowded jails by the violators.
Having said that, a big social change, this rural-women-led anti-liquor movement brought about was that now drunken men can’t openly hit women at least. And that women can talk to someone about a drunken misbehaving man frankly. Thus, a legislative and policy support bringing a grassroots change is what these women aspired for and succeeded in many ways.
Global And Local: Environmental Issues
Greta Thunberg steering a teenage -movement for the planet’s health. A 16-year-old Greta became the face of the climate change action movement after she started her solitary protests in front of the Swedish parliament. Her Fridays for Future initiative (Skipping schools by children on Fridays to show solidarity protests) initially spread through hashtags on social media, led to the growth of local chapters and local actions in almost every continent .and turned into a global movement.
She is mobilizing adults and students alike through her grit and a powerful mobilization all over the world. Back home, in India, We have an 8-year-old Kangujam, a little girl activist who spoke in COP 25, MADRID recently. She says she has a common goal for climate action but not the same story as Greta. Her insistence on having a different identity than Greta inspires hope and confidence on a distinct note. If we can have more little girl leaders in every country, locality, or society around us, the world would be cradling a silent revolution in many ways than imagined.
Women Who’ve Showed Inspiration And Resilience For Their Natural Resources
In 2013, Niyamgiri tribals of Odisha fought for their Niyamgiri Mountain and its resources which were not only their survival source but their object of Worship. Vedanta, a corporate giant, had to bow down along with the Government to move out of the area. In the Niyamgiri community, women are considered equal to men, that’s why women were at the forefront fighting for their self-sufficient life and culture.
These were the few upsurges and movements of the recent past but better education levels, better access to information and collective means of an organization have brought changes in the women-led collective action for the issues around. Internet and globalization have imparted their flavour and support to these movements too. However, we also see the evil detractors, strollers, and abusers in action and patriarchal religious conservative forces at the front to drag these women away.
Despite the legal achievements by revolting women, we see inertia and lack of gender-sensitization in the police machinery in India when a basic First Information Report is difficult to be filed without traumatizing the victim. Normalization of women’s oppression at the workplace, at homes and online, are all co-related and the very aim of the feminist movements.
We have to capitalize on these movements, not suppress or ignore them. Half of the world’s and country’s population can’t be caged or confined to four walls of households in ‘New India’ and a world talking of artificial intelligence and space breakthroughs. I believe, women in the centre, focus, and leadership roles of various political, civil rights, social change, and legal reform movements, especially in the parochial societies, will be a true modernization and progress in the world.
Empowerment of women-symbolic and material- will usher organic transformations in various spheres of lives.