Discrimination To Go Away

Closed eyes

in anticipation

of laughter and joy

onto a dream-state

of imaginary equality

in the closest reality;

alas,

society (read, we) made it harder

and will continue the same

oncoming time,

as to retain

the one-sided pleasure, power, and kingship state

as to play around

with impure thoughts.

*

Stars blink on the night sky

yet,

only a slight ray of light

shades onto your path

to enlighten the heavenly promise of tomorrow.

*

Struggles are there,

challenges too

yet, it is not that far, when-

gender-discrimination will be a myth to generations, when

the future will laugh at the past in pity-

to wonder,

‘Why the discrimination stayed for long?’

*

I have no answer,

but without hiding in shame,

I (read, we) can raise voice to

enlighten others (starting from home)

and to stop acting like hypocrites,

but to live as a human-

to make the world a better place for all.

***

Different personalities worldwide have fought for women’s rights and established gender equality in their countries. I want to highlight a couple of quotes from Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (one of the widely regarded pioneers of women’s liberation in South Asia) in regards to gender equality. Please consider that she lived between 1880 to 1932 in a distant part of the then British ruled Indian subcontinent, where education was considered a rare commodity by rural society. Of course, it was more difficult for women to have access to, or even consider it.

“Why do you allow yourselves to be shut up?’

‘Because it cannot be helped as they are stronger than women.’

‘A lion is stronger than a man, but it does not enable him to dominate the human race. You have neglected the duty you owe to yourselves and you have lost your natural rights by shutting your eyes to your own interests.”

― Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, Sultana’s Dream

“Your kitchen is not inferior to a queen’s boudoir!’ I replied with a pleasant smile, ‘but we must leave it now; for the gentlemen may be cursing me for keeping them away from their duties in the kitchen so long.’ We both laughed heartily.”

― Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, Sultana’s Dream

(Initially published in Medium)