We’ve been living in a Trump world for 100 plus days. Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale paints a terrifying picture of what the world could possible become. This show has been everywhere, and Hulu has put up the big bucks for advertising. While you may have seen glimpses of this show, you probably have no idea what it’s about, and how important it is in today’s world.
Everything was once normal. People had cellphones, called Ubers, and had normal jobs and relationships. Suddenly, getting pregnant and carrying a child to-term was almost impossible. Only a select few females were able to have children, decreasing the population dramatically. Fingers were pointed for the reason behind the infertility, mostly fingers pointing at sinners, LGBTQ members, adulterers, and what the U.S. had become.
After overthrowing the government, a Christian Fundamentalist group launched a revolution. They took away women’s rights, preventing them from handling money, having jobs, and the freedom to read. The group now runs this new society based on the Old Testament of the Bible. Women have no rights, and only the wealthy hold the power.
The women who are able to have children are sent to become Handmaids, women who will have sex with the wealthy men and birth them a child for he and his wife. She has no say in the matter, and if her life is on the line if she talks out of turn.
This story is about Offred, which is literally Of-Fred, her commander’s name. Offred tells us about what once was in the United States, the rebellion, and the revolution take-over.
In Trump’s America, this show couldn’t be more important in highlighting the need to fight back. It promotes fear for what could happen. After all, everything was normal before the revolution, and no one could have dreamed of what would become. Then afterwards, there was no going back.
“Meninist” is a real term some men label themselves as. In this show, we see what happens when men don’t take women’s rights seriously, when they don’t stand up for their wives, mothers, sisters, and loved ones. Most of the men in this show stood back, letting the revolution happen, letting their loved one’s rights be taken away. Offred’s (whose name was June) husband’s first thought to his wife was “I’ll take care of you” not “I’ll fight with you.” Some women also stood back and let it happen, not wanting to stand up for their own rights, then to ultimately have them stripped.
If you take anything away from this show, take away the idea that the oppression is real. While this is a fictional reality, and will most likely never happen (*fingers crossed*), some parts are relevant to modern day. As previously stated, some men do stand back, not defending the women in their lives, despite wanting the best for them. Some men don’t see a problem at all, and would prefer to be the leader of the house, so to speak. Women stand back too, letting the oppression happen with sealed lips.
This is an extreme world, but it’s still a fairly accurate one.
Don’t kid yourself. The things that happen in The Handmaid’s Tale are happening right now. To quote Huffington Post: “It’s already happening here. There are women being wrenched away from their children right now, because they’re undocumented. There are women being forced into carrying pregnancies to term right now, because of the Hyde Amendment and various TRAP laws. There are women being summarily gunned down in the street, because they’re black.“
The Handmaid’s Tale shows us what could become. We already have a health-care bill trying to pass that basically states that being a female is a pre-existing condition. Women are already being oppressed in modern day, not just in a fairy-tale world on TV. What could happen down the road?
The Handmaid’s Tale teaches us to not remain silent. Don’t take what happens in Trump’s America lying down. This applies to those of all genders and races. This is about human rights, because women’s rights are human rights.