Women Empowerment in India

Women Empowerment in India

 

There has been a lot of violent and sad news this week, so I thought I’d write

about a silver lining. Last December, six men in Delhi, India, gang- raped a young

woman, who later died from the injuries, as well as severely injuring her partner.

The case sent the world into a spiral of outrage and debate, with very little

conclusion. Sadly, this case, a long with the much closer to home Steubenville case,

are only examples of especially brutal cases of a far to common occurrence.

 

In India, a group of women decided to take matters into their own hands – they

banded together to call themselves the Red Brigade, named after the bright red

uniform they wear, who take down sexual abusers. Their tactics involve trying to

get the police to intervene and issuing warnings – however, if threats persist, they

will physically stop an offender from an attack, using everything from their bodies

to their shoes. The Brigade is comprised primarily of assault victims, who now

roam the streets of slums and other similarly not quite as safe area, protesting the

sexually abusive and sexist nature against women in India. Originally starting as

a group of about 15 women in 2011, who primarily protested, they recently grew

to about 100 members, and have began training in martial arts to gain a physical

advantage.

 

Though some people see this as primarily a response to the Delhi incident, the red

Brigade’s message is that sexual abuse is part of the daily life for young women –

harassment is extremely commonplace, and stories of abuse and attempted rapes

are only marginally less so. Their message is one of retaliation, and apparently quite

successful – they have noted now that men in their area no longer taunt them, and

some run away when they see them.

 

How universally effective this group is, I don’t know, but its great to see a group

of women standing up for themselves. That sense of empowerment is an amazing

accomplishment on its own.