Wednesday, April 21, 2010

A Feminist Perspective

Woman. The word alone has connotations that have been carried through the ages. It is easily equated to wife, mother or caregiver. Worse still is the term African woman. Weak, poor, powerless, arranged marriage, genital mutilation, market women and not least child bearer. To some extent each of these descriptions fit some African woman on the continent. One forgotten aspect is the power a woman has over life and death of the unborn child. Women may decide to keep their children or worse still terminate all their pregnancies without the consent of their partners. However it comes as a surprise to discover how women have become the victims of their biological makeup. Their very source of power has been exploited and all we hear are women crying for their reproductive health rights.

But all hope is not lost. There are a number or numerous ways women can reclaim their lost glory. One important aspect worth noting is women empowerment through education. Mahatma Gandhi once said educate a man and you educate one person educate a woman you educate a whole nation. And yes it was said by a man and a humanist or maybe he was a militant feminist Of course many think it’s one of those just feel-good quotes with no real backing yet I choose to differ. Empowerment as a process involves a specific approach, strategies and interventions. Through empowerment, there is an expansion of freedom of choice and action. It means increasing ones authority and control over the resources and decisions that affect one’s life. As women exercise real choice they gain increased access. Education is a means of ensuring women attain the power.

Children suffer if mothers are not educated. There needs to be a paradigm shift in our education system where young children currently rely on private tutors to help them with homework and exam preparation resort to their mothers with whom they spend the most time. As education starts from the home, then it is imperative that mothers are educated to a level where they can be directly involved in their children's education without the need for private tutors at an early age. Fail to educate a woman, and you fail to educate an entire nation, and the nation suffers.

Once a woman has been forced to give up her education, the next level of violation of women's rights is in marriage. There are countless stories of women being forced into marriages against their will. Because of their limited experiences and lack of education these women have little or no power to stand against the norms of society. Massive violations of women’s rights are bound to occur among uneducated women. From birth a woman’s right is violated. 'Why is it a girl? Why couldn't you produce a boy'? Some husbands would ask their wives as if the wives are to blame for the birth of baby girls. Many people fail to realise that the chromosomes that decide the gender of the child comes from the father, not the mother. What is more sinister is the case of a doctor who threatened to divorce his wife because she could not produce a baby boy.

In a society where there are large discrepancies in gender equity, the development of the world depends on the empowerment of women. Since women are the caregivers it automatically makes them spend considerable time with their children, it is important to invest in their education. Of course this is no assumption that men teach nothing to their children or downplaying them but rather recognizing the important and active role can play if empowered and given the opportunity.

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