Although many things have changed in the society with the change of time, there is no change in the consumer mentality towards women in the patriarchal society. As a result, women are fixed in thinking that they cannot be equal to men. But if we go a little deeper and say that women look like tamarinds, women look like oranges and women look like apples, etc., the male-dominated civilized society sees women as commodities with thousands of such examples.
Women are constantly belittled through misogynistic statements on all social media including Facebook and YouTube. This idea that women are very insignificant compared to men is explained in the heads of every man in the society. Even new generation girls are brought up with such ideas. Then naturally the question arises whether the society we live in is a civilized society or an uncivilized society? Finding the answer to the question becomes a difficult task.
A group of protesting people started looking for the uncivilized people of the civilized society. Even though they are humans with physical characteristics, their actions are like inhumans, i.e. inferior to animals. And from the hands of those inferior and violent animals, in our society - outside, from the girl child in the mountains or the plains, even the young women and the old women cannot escape. Women are becoming unfit to live in the society of uncivilized people. When the protesting people protested on the streets demanding the trial of those barbarians and assault cases were filed against those protestors. What is the policy of society?
According to newspaper reports, 4 cases were registered against policemen in 2018, 3 in 2019, 4 in 2020 and 4 in 2021 so far. In February 2019, a case was filed against two policemen in Manikganj's Saturia police station for raping a woman. In this way, day after day, month after month, year after year, girls from children to old women are not freed from the hands of men. Who is responsible for this little child? Old lady? Young women? A teenager or a young woman? Men in patriarchal society are responsible for this because a little girl child does not know how to dress. But she is also a victim of rape.
Due to the spread of discrimination between men and women at various levels in our society, women have to be subjected to various forms of injustice and violence in their family and social life. Women's clothing is particularly blamed for rape. Previously, the behavior of women is analyzed. If a boy has eight to ten relationships, his chastity does not get tarnished, but if a girl has two to three relationships, her chastity gets tarnished. He is compared to the rotten stinking product of society as characterless. There is no problem if the male child is black during marriage, but if the female child is black, there are many problems. Dowry should be paid more in marriage.
When a boy is born in our rural or urban family, the family proudly distributes sweets. And when a girl child is born, a dark cloud descends on the family, and the forehead becomes freckled due to worry. Sons are unwritten as owners of family property. Boys and girls are not brought up in the same way from childhood. A girl child is not given the same freedom as a boy child is given. The girl child will spend all the time with the mother at home and the boy child will spend time with the father in outside work. Non-vegetarian food is given more to boys during feeding. By treating boys in such a small way biased, boys grow up mentally single-minded. From the family, the boy child himself starts to think that he is more needed in the society than the girl child. It does not automatically inculcate the mentality of looking down on women in the society or thinking of men as equals. This education continues through generations and gradually spreads from family to all levels of society.
The main reason for violence against women is the weakness of women. Lack of respect for women is one of the reasons due to inequality in distribution of family property. A woman is economically deprived because she does not have equal rights to family property and is also consciously and unconsciously perceived as less qualified or weaker than a man. As a result, men begin to think of themselves as stronger, more powerful and more competent. Disparate and discriminatory treatment of men and women in the family and social system results in disrespect and physical and mental abuse of women.
Respect and dignity of women at family and social level should be ensured to remove disrespectful attitude towards women, discriminatory behavior and invisible psychological burden. In order not to harass women in educational institutions or workplaces, emphasis should be placed on showing respect to women in social and educational infrastructure. If the male members of the family can develop the habit of learning to truly respect women, it will bring about a change in the entire society including its next generation. The culture of thinking of women not as commodities or weak 'girls' but as human beings must be ensured from our families.
Proper initiative should be taken to stop the ugly vulgarity and uncultured social media. The culture of impunity must be changed and the law must be strictly enforced. In the case of violence against women, attention should be paid not to take the solution through rural arbitration. Equal rights and dignity should be ensured by removing the discrimination between men and women. Education of women as human beings and women's rights must be ensured first in the family environment. In order to change the men's attitude to stop violence against women, mass awareness should be developed through plays, movies, street meetings. The writer is essayist and columnist
