The chapter “Women Change the World” explores gender inequality in both domestic and professional settings, highlighting how certain jobs are often perceived as more suitable for men. It emphasizes the importance of education in creating opportunities for women and recounts the struggles of women to access education and challenge societal discrimination. It discusses the Women’s Movement aimed at achieving equality and justice for women.
Breaking Stereotypes
What Stereotypes Mean
- Stereotypes are fixed ideas that people have about what men and women should do, even if these ideas don’t match their real talents or interests.
Example: Laxmi Lakra’s Story
- Laxmi Lakra, a 27-year-old woman from a poor tribal family in Jharkhand, became the first woman engine driver for Northern Railways in India.
- She challenged the belief that only men can drive trains by studying electronics, earning a diploma, and passing the railway exam on her first attempt.
- Laxmi faced challenges but believed she could follow her dreams if she enjoyed it, didn’t hurt anyone, and helped her family.
Everyday Stereotypes
- Many people think women should only be nurses because they believe women are gentle and patient by nature.
- Some say science and technical jobs are for men because they think women can’t handle them, which isn’t true.
- These wrong ideas stop girls from getting chances to show what they can really do.
Fewer Opportunities and Rigid Expectations
How Stereotypes Limit Girls
- People often think girls should only do jobs like nursing, so they don’t get the same support as boys to become doctors or engineers.
- Society sometimes believes technical subjects like science are too hard for girls, which makes it tougher for them to study these fields.
Society’s Rules for Girls and Boys
- In many families, people expect girls to focus on getting married after school instead of continuing their education or starting a career.
- Boys are pushed to earn lots of money and act tough, and they get teased if they don’t follow these rules.
Changing These Rules
- Laxmi Lakra proved these ideas wrong by becoming an engine driver, showing that girls can succeed in any job with hard work.
Learning for Change
Why Education Is Important
- Education is a big part of life today, but in the past, many children, especially girls, didn’t get the chance to go to school.
Education Long Ago
- Years ago, only a few people learned to read and write, and most children just helped with family work like farming or crafts.
- Girls had an even harder time because they weren’t allowed to learn letters, while boys often could, and their help at home wasn’t valued much.
- In the 19th century, new thoughts about education grew, and some people fought to start schools for girls despite others saying no.
Women Changed by Learning
- Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain learned Bangla and English even though people tried to stop her, and she wrote a story called Sultana’s Dream about women’s power.
- Rashsundari Devi taught herself to read and write secretly, against the belief it was bad luck, and wrote her life story in Amar Jiban.
Problems We Still Face
- Today, many girls in India leave school because of poverty, bad school conditions, or unfair treatment, especially in villages and poor areas.
Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain and ‘Ladyland’
Who Rokeya Was
- Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain was born in 1880 into a rich family where she learned Urdu, but Bangla and English were kept from her at first.
How She Learned
- Her brother and sister helped her learn Bangla and English, and she grew up to become a writer with big ideas.
Her Story Sultana’s Dream
- In 1905, at age 25, Rokeya wrote Sultana’s Dream, a story about a place called Ladyland where women studied, worked, and invented things like flying cars.
- In the story, women used their brains to beat men’s weapons, and men had to stay inside while women took charge.
What She Left Behind
- Rokeya opened a school for girls in Kolkata in 1910, which still runs today, helping girls learn and dream big.
Schooling and Education Today
School Today
- Nowadays, lots of boys and girls in India go to school, which is much better than it used to be long ago.
How Literacy Has Grown
- In 1961, only 40 out of 100 boys and men aged 7 and older could read and write, while just 15 out of 100 girls and women could, according to the census.
- By 2011, this grew to 82 out of 100 boys and men and 65 out of 100 girls and women, but boys are still ahead in reading and writing.
Why Children Stop School
- Girls from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes leave school more often than other girls because schools and teachers are missing in many rural places.
- Muslim girls stay in school for about three years, while other girls stay for four years, as shown in the 2011 census.
- Families may not send girls to school if it’s far, there’s no transport, or they’re too poor, and they often choose boys over girls.
- Sometimes, teachers or classmates treat these children unfairly, which makes them stop going to school.
Work Still Needed
- We need to do more so all girls, no matter where they’re from, can stay in school and get a good education.
Women’s Movement
What the Women’s Movement Is
- The women’s movement is when women and some men team up to make life fairer for women and girls by fixing unfair rules.
How It Helps
- The movement fights for women’s rights with campaigns, new laws, awareness events, protests, and support for each other.
Big Wins
- In 2006, a law was made to protect women from violence at home, called domestic violence, because of the movement.
- In 1997, the Supreme Court set rules to stop sexual harassment at work and school after the movement pushed for it.
- In the 1980s, the movement protested dowry deaths, where brides were killed for dowry, and got stronger laws passed.
Campaigning
Why We Campaign
- Campaigning is when women come together to stop unfair treatment and violence by telling people about these issues.
How Campaigns Happen
- They use street plays, songs, and public meetings to teach everyone about women’s rights and why they’re important.
What Campaigns Did
- The 2006 law against domestic violence came from these efforts.
- In the 1980s, campaigns against dowry deaths led to better dowry laws.
- The Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign, started in 2014, helps girls live and learn.
Raising Awareness
Spreading the Word
- The women’s movement uses street plays, songs, and meetings to tell people about women’s rights and get their support.
Why It’s Useful
- This helps campaigns by making more people care about fixing women’s problems.
Protesting
What Protesting Is
- Protesting is when the women’s movement speaks out against wrongs done to women or bad laws by gathering in public places.
How It Works
- They hold rallies and demonstrations to show everyone the unfair things happening to women.
Why It Matters
- Protests get attention and help push for changes alongside campaigns.
Showing Solidarity
What Solidarity Is
- Showing solidarity means women support each other and other good causes to make their movement stronger.
Examples of Support
- On August 14, people light candles at the Wagah border to show friendship between India and Pakistan.
- On March 8, International Women’s Day, women worldwide celebrate and keep fighting for their rights.
How It Helps
- This support makes the movement bigger and helps campaigns and protests succeed.
Questions and Answers
- How do you think stereotypes, about what women can or cannot do, affect women’s right to equality? Stereotypes limit women’s opportunities and reinforce gender inequality. When society believes women are only suited for certain roles (e.g., nurses) or lack capability in technical fields (e.g., science), girls may not receive the same support as boys to pursue certain education or careers. This can affect women’s right to equality by restricting their choices and perpetuating the idea that they are not capable of achieving as much as men.
- List one reason why learning the alphabet was so important to women like Rashsundari Devi, Ramabai, and Rokeya. Learning to read and write allowed these women to question and challenge the inequalities they faced in society. For example, Rashsundari Devi secretly taught herself to read and write, which allowed her to read religious manuscripts and share her life experiences through her autobiography. Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain’s education enabled her to write stories and establish a school for girls. Ramabai championed women’s education and established a mission to encourage women to become literate and independent.
- “Poor girls drop out of school because they are not interested in getting an education.” Re-read the last paragraph on page 62 and explain why this statement is not true. This statement is untrue because many factors beyond a lack of interest contribute to girls dropping out of school. Poverty, inadequate schooling facilities, discrimination, and the prioritization of boys’ education over girls’ education can force girls to discontinue their studies.
- Can you describe two methods of struggle that the women’s movement used to raise issues? If you had to organise a struggle against stereotypes, about what women can or cannot do, what method would you employ from the ones that you have read about? Why would you choose this particular method? Two methods of struggle used by the women’s movement are:
- Raising Awareness: The women’s movement uses street plays, songs, and public meetings to spread their message and increase public knowledge of women’s rights issues.Protesting: The women’s movement uses public rallies and demonstrations to raise its voice against violations against women and policies that act against their interests.
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