Musings of a 19-year old-Personal Statement, sometime in 2018

“We came equals into this world, and equals shall we go out of it”

-George Mason

It was 4 am in the morning, I was travelling to the Trichy Railway Station in a cab with the driver. My father was totally against me travelling all alone with only the driver without any of my friends. There were so many “What ifs” that I had to give an answer to, for my father to allow me to do this herculean task of “travelling alone”.

Why?

Simply because I am a girl. A girl travelling alone in India.

In many instances like these, I just wished I was a boy.

The need for gender equality, a cliché subject, is discussed time and again, but a one that still hasn’t got the attention that it deserves. For gender equality to set in with concrete strength, I want to work on empowering the society, rather than empowering women. It pains my heart to hear news about child marriage, sexual abuse, denial of education, female foeticide and what not, odds seldom being in favour of women/girls.

My idea of an equal world is not where women try to do all that men do, but where both are given equal opportunities and they choose what to do. Stereotypes hinder creativity and they need to be broken.

Years of “Sanskari girls don’t do this, don’t do that” have crippled their wings. Young girls need to be taught the importance to decide to be brave and courageous. And that is what I would like to see in this world a few years from now.

Don’t teach your son to protect girls, teach him to build a world where girls aren’t afraid anymore.