Wishing all of you a very happy International Men's Day to you!
Celebrate it to the fullest!!!
Why International Men's Day
On this day people spontaneously recollect the International Women's Day celebrated on March 8th every year. While celebrations of International Women's Day has gained a lot of traction, International Men's Day is relatively very unknown.
International Men's Day was conceived only in 1992 and in India its celebration started only after 2007. But this doesn't mean this day should be passed off quietly.
Most people don't understand the importance of this day and the awareness it's trying to bring in our society.
Biased Laws
Apart from other problems men suffer from worldwide, India has a peculiar problem of gender biased laws. So protests on this day include the demand to bring in gender-neutrality, amending of draconian section 498-A of IPC, misuse of rape law, dowry law, creation of a Men's Commission to end all discrimination and abuse against men.
Many people look sarcastically to many of these demands and this day itself. But the facts say otherwise.
While there is no denying that women suffer from sexual abuse, rape & marital abuses, domestic violence and discriminatory behaviours; but that doesn't prove men are not vulnerable. Men suffer from many more problems in our society. Although man is considered to be from a privileged gender, no gender group is homogeneous and you can't generalize everything.
Men's mental health
Did you know the biggest killer of men under the age of 45 is suicides? Ever tried to probe why do so many men commit suicides?
Our social patriarchal conditioning forces men to bottle up their emotions. Mental health issues of men are more complex and severe and often ignored. I've known quite some friends who have committed or tried to commit suicides in past. I've came across a lot of friends with serious mental issues. This day is to encourage everyone to be more embracing, accommodative and open to issues concerning men's mental health and initiate constructive dialogues to resolve it.
Marriage-related reasons, financial issues, social mindset about masculinity, social obligation to provide for the family, social exposure to substance abuse etc. .....there are many reasons that more men than women kill themselves in India.
Discrimination
India's caste system is still very strongly discriminatory against several castes. And discrimination against men is not just by men but also from women who belong to Savarna (elite) caste group. Discrimination at schools and work places to violent acts like humiliation and murder are commonplace against "lower" caste men.
And did you know that in India, more boys than girls are sexually abused? A 2007 study by Ministry of Women & Child Welfare itself substantiated this fact. It's always difficult for a survivor of any sexual violence to speak up about the abuse and the abuser(s), However, it's more so in the case of men because of their gender. Male rape is rarely discussed or reported by media. Police too don't easily cooperate with males in such cases and the victim is made the target of distasteful jokes owning to the social perception that mard / "real" men always want sex.
And this is the scenario in case of abuse in hetronormative sexuality. But reporting of abuse in cases involving transgender and queer men is much more difficult.
Men are more prone to violence in gang rivalry, wars, mob attacks, crimes and to be framed in false legal cases. Society and law enforcement officials are generally observed to be biased on the basis of gender while dealing with people of equivalent criminal allegations.
Did you know there are less than 5% women in Indian prisons as prisoners?
Apart from these, there are many more issues with men that need to be brought to the attention of our society. Personally, I believe that equality should be irrespective of genders.. There is inter and intra gender discrimination in our society. Not only that, there is intra and inter species discrimination too. And that's where intersectionality comes about. We should be more focused on equality and harmony.
May the celebration of International Men's Day gain more prominence!
Thank you for being here for me, so I can be here for you.
Enjoy your day and stay creative!
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