What does it mean to be a woman
A few days ago I watched a documentary film "Saving Face" about acid attacks in Pakistan. It featured scores of women who once had acid splashed on them by disgruntled jilted lovers and abusive in-laws, and clearly depicted how such crimes were forming an evident trend in their male-dominated society.
As I watched I felt so uncomfortable and emotional. It wasn't just because the film depicted an overwhelming number of once-beautiful women with melted, disfigured features and crushed self-esteem. It was mostly because I couldn't understand why such a socioeconomically distant issue could stir up so many emotions in me.
Eventually I realised it was because I felt I could somewhat associate with the fears and humiliation of the victims. Living in an advanced society, most of my peers and I will probably never experience the pains of gender inequality and violence on the same level as those Pakistani women. Yet at the same time, such a circumstance not entirely alien to us. It is fathomable for us. Because I'm sure any girl/woman would have experienced sexual humiliation and degradation at some point in their lives. Having a part of their bodies taken advantage of and made fun of. Having their intelligence and capabilities insulted, just because they are female. It doesn't always have to come from men either. Too often do we belittle our own gender.
I suppose it is this very personal association all women have with each other which unifies us. It is because of this universal feminine telepathy that one female activist would be willing to fight for the rights of another. That issues such as rape, prostitution, domestic violence and in this case, acid attacks on women, immediately strike a chord with all females. We hear such stories wondering "what if it happened to me, my sister, my daughter?"
Thankfully the documentary ended on an extremely positive note - some of the acid victims won court cases against their perpetrators and moved on with life while the Pakistani government passed an Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Bill to deter such attacks in the future. There was also a lot of heartwarming compassion and tenacity displayed by the acid attack survivors and their supporters. As the ending credits rolled out I felt my own mishmash of negative feelings pass as well.