I formally learnt about feminism from the likes of Pushpa Achanta. What I understood was that feminism strives for gender equality. By extension, it stands for all forms of equality and justice, and a deep empathy for others.
What I see around me, what passes for feminism, is actually very different. One of the defining characteristics of contemporary feminism is that though shalt not speak about it. I am a male and it is outside my purview. I will listen and obey, not discuss and understand.
The current Corona crisis has unravelled a lot of the issues with contemporary feminism, that I have observed but not spoken about.
The feminism that is discussed and spoken about in India, is the feminism of upper to middle class urban Indians. All of the baggage of that class - a false sense of merit, and caste, class and financial privilege - comes with it. Our feminists compete with American feminists, who, in the absence of much of this privilege, are a completely different beast.
Middle class women who work, who take care of the home, and who are social activists - they are all supported by the poor working class women who take care of their homes. This working class woman takes care of her home, and also works outside to financially support her household. She has much more in common with feminists in the west than her educated employers.
The employer is in conflict with the interests of the employee. The employer does not look upon the employee as another woman who suffers from gender and wage inequality, workplace harassment, etc. She is the other.
COVID has sent all these workers home. The work done by her must now be done by workers of the household.
This presents a peculiar challenge. You see, aping the west, the Indian feminist has laid forth the following claims: (a) When she does not earn, she is still an equal contributor to the household because of the domestic work she does. (b) When she does earn, she does more than the male partner, because she both earns as well as takes care of the household.
But now, we find that a ton of new work has erupted in the household with the departure of the domestic worker woman. Then was the claim made in (a) above, false? Hours and hours a day of work, that you claimed you took care of, was actually being paid for by your working partner.
These kind of dilemmas come about because Indian feminists, just like their American counterparts, use feminism as a tool to further the interests of their own class. Their class is not the class of all women - their class is educated urban women.
This is why in India and the US, you see chimeras such as the conservative feminist. So you're feminist, but also believe in Hindutva. Therefore, you hate Ambedkar, who fought with the Hindu Mahasabha and brought out the Hindu code bills that gave women any of the rights they now enjoy in India. You also hate the USSR, even though communism began the process of giving women equal rights, and forced the hands of the west in giving women voting franchise. Finally, and most importantly, you hate the Muslim woman for the crime of being born Muslim and then bringing so many more Muslims into the world.
Over the years I've had arguments with many of my friends. When they say "we need X absolute right for women in India", I say that is great, but at what expense does that come? Does your safety at midnight on the streets of the metropolis, come at the expense of women police officers putting their own lives at risk doing patrolling duty, when they should be solving crimes against women. These trade-offs - people don't want to think about them. They want rights without responsibilities.
So women in India exercise the right to employ a domestic worker. But they need to be told, reminded, that during the Corona crisis, they must pay their workers, even if they are not getting any work out of them. They form cartels and use RWAs to limit the wages of working women. They do not fight casteism; they in face encourage RWAs to demarcate separate lifts for workers.
I asked a woman once why she supports separate lifts. She said she feels unsafe with worker men; and they smell. Statistically, men of a lower class pose barely any risk to women in India. When they cross that class line, it creates the kind of furore that the Nirbhaya case created. But what is more galling is that this modern feminist is OK with working women being exposed to these dangerous working men in the separate lifts.
This issue of feminism in India, we don't talk about it. People like me rely on discussions with others to understand issues. We don't rely on books, news anchors or gurus to tell us what we should believe. This rambling post clearly indicates that my thoughts on the subject are confused.
I've tried touching these topics with people. It always lead to resistance. I fully expect a bunch of people to unfriend me today. That is a small price to pay. For too long we have allowed a certain very vocal set of people to dominate gender discourse in India. They make up the rules as they go along. They also study feminism for the 95% of Indian women, and tell the world what feminism means in India. Yes, as with so many other things, the 5% privileged Indian who has inherited their last name, wealth and educational opportunity (what they call merit) - this 5% makes the rules for everybody. And this 5% doesn't like you debating their little fiefdom.
What I see around me, what passes for feminism, is actually very different. One of the defining characteristics of contemporary feminism is that though shalt not speak about it. I am a male and it is outside my purview. I will listen and obey, not discuss and understand.
The current Corona crisis has unravelled a lot of the issues with contemporary feminism, that I have observed but not spoken about.
The feminism that is discussed and spoken about in India, is the feminism of upper to middle class urban Indians. All of the baggage of that class - a false sense of merit, and caste, class and financial privilege - comes with it. Our feminists compete with American feminists, who, in the absence of much of this privilege, are a completely different beast.
Middle class women who work, who take care of the home, and who are social activists - they are all supported by the poor working class women who take care of their homes. This working class woman takes care of her home, and also works outside to financially support her household. She has much more in common with feminists in the west than her educated employers.
The employer is in conflict with the interests of the employee. The employer does not look upon the employee as another woman who suffers from gender and wage inequality, workplace harassment, etc. She is the other.
COVID has sent all these workers home. The work done by her must now be done by workers of the household.
This presents a peculiar challenge. You see, aping the west, the Indian feminist has laid forth the following claims: (a) When she does not earn, she is still an equal contributor to the household because of the domestic work she does. (b) When she does earn, she does more than the male partner, because she both earns as well as takes care of the household.
But now, we find that a ton of new work has erupted in the household with the departure of the domestic worker woman. Then was the claim made in (a) above, false? Hours and hours a day of work, that you claimed you took care of, was actually being paid for by your working partner.
These kind of dilemmas come about because Indian feminists, just like their American counterparts, use feminism as a tool to further the interests of their own class. Their class is not the class of all women - their class is educated urban women.
This is why in India and the US, you see chimeras such as the conservative feminist. So you're feminist, but also believe in Hindutva. Therefore, you hate Ambedkar, who fought with the Hindu Mahasabha and brought out the Hindu code bills that gave women any of the rights they now enjoy in India. You also hate the USSR, even though communism began the process of giving women equal rights, and forced the hands of the west in giving women voting franchise. Finally, and most importantly, you hate the Muslim woman for the crime of being born Muslim and then bringing so many more Muslims into the world.
Over the years I've had arguments with many of my friends. When they say "we need X absolute right for women in India", I say that is great, but at what expense does that come? Does your safety at midnight on the streets of the metropolis, come at the expense of women police officers putting their own lives at risk doing patrolling duty, when they should be solving crimes against women. These trade-offs - people don't want to think about them. They want rights without responsibilities.
So women in India exercise the right to employ a domestic worker. But they need to be told, reminded, that during the Corona crisis, they must pay their workers, even if they are not getting any work out of them. They form cartels and use RWAs to limit the wages of working women. They do not fight casteism; they in face encourage RWAs to demarcate separate lifts for workers.
I asked a woman once why she supports separate lifts. She said she feels unsafe with worker men; and they smell. Statistically, men of a lower class pose barely any risk to women in India. When they cross that class line, it creates the kind of furore that the Nirbhaya case created. But what is more galling is that this modern feminist is OK with working women being exposed to these dangerous working men in the separate lifts.
This issue of feminism in India, we don't talk about it. People like me rely on discussions with others to understand issues. We don't rely on books, news anchors or gurus to tell us what we should believe. This rambling post clearly indicates that my thoughts on the subject are confused.
I've tried touching these topics with people. It always lead to resistance. I fully expect a bunch of people to unfriend me today. That is a small price to pay. For too long we have allowed a certain very vocal set of people to dominate gender discourse in India. They make up the rules as they go along. They also study feminism for the 95% of Indian women, and tell the world what feminism means in India. Yes, as with so many other things, the 5% privileged Indian who has inherited their last name, wealth and educational opportunity (what they call merit) - this 5% makes the rules for everybody. And this 5% doesn't like you debating their little fiefdom.