Women’s empowerment
By: Afreen Manzoor
If you want something said, ask a man, if you want something done, ask a woman – Margaret Thatcher
Talking about Women Empowerment, it stands for empowering women by giving wings to their dreams by ending stereotypes and surpassing social stigma that society is having. Empowering women is making women realize self worth, their abilities to determine and also means to ‘No Discrimination’ against women.
The percentage of male and female is almost 50:50 around the world but the allowances and position of both the genders is not similar in society, whether that is a developed or developing country.
Empowering women also means awareness among women to know about their rights either legal rights or fundamental rights. There was a time when women were regarded as second class citizens around the world and they were not having even right to vote.
New Zealand was the first country that gave women right to vote in 1893. The presence of women in workplaces in western world came with the emergence of World War 1 and with the spread of Industrialization when supply chain could not be stopped and men were busy with the war.
Still, women were not having equal pay for equal work and less decision making power in every sphere of activity. Though, the trend is seen even today it needs to be rectified across the board, be it developing nations or the developed world.
In developing countries like India there needs to be significant change in the status of women from girls being allowed to go to school to pursuing degrees of their choices to choosing work of their choice and most importantly having their own decision making power.
The safety and security of girls and women should be an utmost priority both for citizens as well as the government. One should appreciate young women trying to pursue their dreams to giving wings to their aspirations. One should accept and appreciate the change that society would be having.
Young entrepreneurs should be allowed to flourish in order to make a change from being a fashion designer to becoming a doctor and being a civil engineer and what not. Women can do multitasking and can become what they want to be. The most alluring thing a woman can have is confidence.
It is a well known fact that economically, women earn less and are less economically productive then men almost across the world and women have less opportunity to shape their lives and make decisions than men do. With availability of resources and being self reliant can increase the confidence of women, their self esteem would improve and all the negativity and unreasonable criticism would shed away.
One of the most important factors that is best to help empowering women is Education. An educated woman is like a teacher in a family who makes sure that every child goes to school irrespective of whether it is a boy or a girl.
It brings prosperity not only to woman and her family but also to nation as Ava Duvernay claims, “Ignore the glass ceiling and do your work. If you are focusing on what you don’t have, focusing on the limitations, than you will be limited.”
(The author is a student)
KV News
