Men Against Rape

                                                                               

Men Against Rape

Almost each new day, you see headlines in newspapers dominated by rape and gang rape stories, which only raise questions about women’s safety in India. The different types of brutal cases of rape taking place all across the country aptly portrays the perils and anguishes of women at the hands of the male predators who get an uncanny pleasure in ravishing a woman’s body, our country’s widespread rape culture. 

But when we talk of the Men of our society, is it really fair to generalise them? Indian society in fact has undergone many changes under the impact of women empowerment movements, modernization, westernization, mass literacy and so on. Today the gender gap has reduced a lot and many men in our country think quite progressively, respect women and their individuality, and are eager to fight shoulder to shoulder with women against the rapes taking place in the country. 

The voice of our politicians/actors against rape

Many male celebrities and eminent people like actors and politicians have set an example for commoners to follow by raising their voice against the social malice of rape and supporting women in this battle. Let’s see what some of them have to say:

Abu Asim Azmi, who is the state president of the Maharashtra Samajwadi Party remarks,“I support death penalty for the Delhi rapists but there should also be a law that women should not wear less clothes and roam around with boys who are not their relatives. What is the need for roaming at night with men who are not relatives? This should be stopped.”

Actor Kushaal Punjabi after the very recent Mumbai gang rape incident remarked,” This time, if we don’t act, it’s over. We will be sealing the fate for all our girl children. It isn’t about Mumbai or Delhi. It’s about India” 

The MARD Movement:

By getting the cooperation and support from some of the forward thinking men of our society, this widespread epidemic of violence against women may hopefully be controlled in near future. Of late, many celebrities like Farhan Akthar, Yuvraj, Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar have stood up for the MARD movement which is the abbreviated form of ‘Men against Rape and Discrimination’. 

They have been campaigning and conveying the social message of gender equality through the recitation of ‘Mard’ which is a poem composed by Mahesh Babu. The poem has been translated into various languages and recited by male celebrities in the hope of bringing about a positive social change, and for the women of India to feel assured that not all men are alike….some are actually fighting tooth and nail to ensure that justice is served.

While today these modern men are trying to bring about a change in the society, a man standing up to protect the rights of women is not something new to our country.  Some other similar movements were undertaken in the past by men to foster gender equality and fight violence against women in society. Raja Ram Mohan Roy’s campaigning to condemn the inhuman social evil of Sati or the Kranti Sena Movement started by our famous freedom fighter Bhagat Singh are only but a few such examples.

 MARD is a contemporary movement, while the other two examples are forever written in the pages of Indian history and date far back, telling us of honourable men who attempted to reform society even back then by ending gender inequality and inhuman practices on women.

Can one man make a difference?

A few good men can change the world, but even one man who makes an attempt to thwart this rape-culture our country is harbouring will make a genuine difference. Here are a few things you can do:

• Take a stand if you see a woman being harassed. While it isn’t heroic to take on a gang alone, calling your nearest police station ASAP is.
• Be a part of any local movement that requires you to pledge support in order to make India safer for women. Be it about giving lectures in slums, schools, colleges or low income colonies, any message you can deliver on gender equality will make a difference.
• If you find a woman walking down the road on her way back from work alone after sunset through dangerous localities, genuinely offer to escort her to the nearest bus stand or metro station. Similarly, if you see a woman travelling alone through public mode of transports at night and you notice a rowdy group of men come aboard, take the seat next to her so that they don’t think she is alone.
• Find ways to increase public awareness on the matter. Start a blog that tells others what men can do to stand against rape, or be brave to bring up this conversation in front of those in the society who are biased about gender roles and are still struggling to break free from it.