Even as we are about to celebrate our 76th Independence day, our country is still plagued with issues like racial discrimination and sexual harassment. There are an unfortunate number of cases of female infanticide, caste-based violence, dowry death, domestic violence, street harassment and racial violence happening every day. What is even more alarming is that such harrowing acts are still justified and normalized in our society.
And as women, who are constantly being subjected to discrimination and harassment, they must also face victim-blaming.
Recently, a Twitter user, Ngurang Reena narrated her experience of facing sexual and racial harassment on the streets of the capital. Ngurang, a native of Arunachal Pradesh, wrote how her identity as a woman and as a person from the North-east, leads to her constantly being targeted in public spaces. She further wrote that she has to avoid certain places just because of her identity.
Obviously, this isn't a single case and, unfortunately, many women especially from the Northeast are harassed every day on the streets. This raises an important concern about how, as a society and as a nation, we have constantly failed women. And how for so long the onus of being safe is put on women instead of holding men accountable for their actions.
Intolerance at Play
Despite being one of the fastest developing economies in the world, our society is still deeply patriarchal and rooted in social evils of racism, casteism and religious intolerance. On top of that, we have seen people often resort to victim-blaming as a way to maintain the status quo.
Just like in the case of Ngurang, after she expressed her ordeal on Twitter, instead of getting support, she received yet another 'friendly' piece of advice from a man asking her to "avoid roaming at roads and unknown places during late nights," who also, ironically, made a racist comment when he said, "We wish your safety and happy stay in India."
This is a perfect example of what is wrong with our society.
"She's Indian"
After his comment, many enraged users came out in support of her. They criticized the man for being racist and sexist. This is what they said:
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