I have been fortunate to be at the right place at the right time, thanks to God's grace. For the purposes of this post, I can disclose nothing more than that my work affords me the opportunity to work with the female delegates of the National Conference, currently taking place in the Federal Capital of Nigeria. One thing I have found is that opportunities come but once but not all grabbing at that chance are worthy of its grasp.
For years, women have been told that their place belonged in the kitchen. Then came the war, when the men were off battling on the fields and women were left to fend for themselves and their households. Now? In this day and age, I thought we'd moved past all that? But it seems double standards are reinforced everywhere. Its so innately vested in each of us that its hard to call yourself out at that given time. Women donning aprons? Well, let's view that for a second. Mysogynists would have women believe that domesticated crafts were their only forte. So, although women should sit at home mending their partner's clothes, the most famous designers are men? While women slave over a hot stove, there are higher percentages of Michelin star chefs who are men? ENOUGH!
Women should be allowed to do and act in whichever way we damn well please. Not for the sake of throwing a feminist tantrum, but for the mere fact that we also are worthy human beings. Men are allowed to palm the oysterous globe while women peer over their necks? ENOUGH! Women should be allowed to set the bar as high as they personally see fit. Why are men commended for aiming high independently and women are condemned for following the same path?
Left- Dress : House of Fraser | Bag : Moschino | Watch : Michael Kors
Right- Racer overalls from GET Arena
Instead of using our various platforms to empower one another, we choose to cage ourselves or slam one another. A crime, I for one, am guilty of. A female delegate openly addressed the floor of the National Conference, professing a woman's place was in the kitchen, donning an apron. A female acquaintance of mine openly condemned women who dressed promiscuously as crying out to be raped. Lastly, I have in the past shut down girls nearing 30's who've decided to become homeowners while praising men in that same position. The hypocrisy is rich on our breaths and I'm stepping out to try to understand why that is.
Onyxsta says...BLEURGH!! Whatever men can do, women may not do better but we sure as hell can do too! x
you look lovely. the most frustrating thing to me is when women perpetuate patriarchy, but it has been so deeply ingrained in us that it will take some time to unlearn . And don't ever feel apologetic about feminist rants, they are necessary.
ReplyDeletePersonally, i try to walk the talk, which is: constantly calling out sexism whether from a man, woman or me. Great post.
Thankyou! I completely agree that sometimes its an uphill battle, fighting for feminism and women's rights because we ourselves can be our very own barriers. You are such a great motivation to me to keep writing and I want to honestly thank you for your continuing support. I look forward to your comments, because I feel like they come from such a genuine space.
DeleteI once read that real education comes after the teaching; the unlearning of what has been taught. In this sense, we were brought up to like pink, love braiding eachother's hair and appreciate that we were the weaker sex. However, there is strength in weakness, and now we have to re-learn how to adopt that real strength in the real world. A lot of 'real's there, but that's the real truth