[International Woman’s Day 15% discount* on any purchase on Jaya Teas website. Enter the code “womansday” at check out. Here is the reason why…]
The birth of my second daughter, shortly after Mr. Obama won the election, got me thinking about the future of my two daughters in this country. Mr. Obama’s election made me very optimistic about the chances of my two girls in the United States. A country that reconciles with its past and elects a person of color to the highest office is a exhibiting signs of a maturing culture, and I was happy that my girls would be growing up in such a mature society.
As a child I had read about the struggle of women in the American society for equal pay and equal rights. In India I never felt the need to think about equal pay and equal rights because, although India is a relatively old civilization with conservative values, when it comes to gender equality, I felt like India was leap years ahead of the rest of the world. There were many reasons why I felt this way, starting with the fact that while most countries (including United States) are yet to install a woman as its chief executive, India was one of the few countries in the world where a woman, Indira Gandhi, had held the highest office of the land. Having Indira Gandhi run the country for 17 years made us feel that women could indeed play a significant role in Indian society.
But even more so, in my religion, Hinduism, I saw some of the greatest symbols of woman’s powers exhibited and worshipped out in the open. In Hinduism, the female deity holds incredible power. For instance, Laxmi is the Goddess of Wealth, Saraswati the goddess of knowledge and Durga holds the power to destroy evil. So, if you have the corner on knowledge, wealth and power what else could one want!! India is not perfect by any means, but growing up with such symbols I never felt insecure about my role in the society as a woman.
Yet we know that countries like US and India are islands in a sea of nations where such freedoms are not enjoyed universally by women. In fact, in many of the “old world” countries, women find themselves shackled by the social mores that may have had a place in 15th or 16th century, but certainly have no place in modern society. In many Arabian countries, women are still not allowed to enjoy basic privilages such as driving a car, or taking a job, or going to movies on their own etc. Repressive regimes such as the Revolutionary Government in Iran, or repressive movements like the Taleban in Pakistan and Afghanistan espouse theological views that are directed at denying the basic human rights to women. Even in India, I am sorry to say, recently there have been incidents of self-righteous conservative men attacking women for enjoying a beverage with their male friends.
So, although we are in the twenty first century, on March 8th there is still a strong reason for celebrating the International Woman’s Day. While in the US we may have reached a stage where we are enjoying these rights, we must remember that there are millions around the world that need our encouragement and support in their daily struggle against the tyranny of government rule or social mores that hold them down.
There are many ways to celebrate this day:
- One is to learn more about this holiday by visiting the website of International Woman’s Day.
- Another is to show the women in your life an appreciation for their contributions.
- Take your mother or sister out for dinner, of if you are a man, take your wife out for dinner.
- Blog about this day on your blogs and talk about this day in your churches and social groups.
- If you can, support a woman owned business.
On our side, we are happy to offer everybody a 15% discount* on any of our products. Simply use the phrase “womansday” at the time of checkout to avail of the discount. And yes, you can get this discount even if you are not a woman, but you have to promise to tell some one about the International Woman’s Day!!
*No other offer applies.
Photo credit: Rajesh Kumar Singh
