Monday, October 8, 2007

Shaping women's rights for tomorrow

In my last birth I must have been a woman activist or reformer of some sort. Ever since I was a child I was very sensitive to issues about equality. I always argued with my parents about why my older brother was given certain liberties over me – and trust me my parents are the liberal type. I was always a little headstrong and believed that what was good for the goose was good for the gander. I hated the double standard of the society we lived in.

From a headstrong child I have now transitioned into motherhood. As my maternal instincts have kicked in I have come to realize that as a parent of a son I have to instill in him values for a new generation of males. The respect for women starts with the first woman in your life teaching you the fundamentals of that respect and equality. I do not believe that households’ chores are the forte of women alone as women today are going out to the workplace in high profile jobs as CEO’s, Directors etc.. The basis of any
on-going relationship is the realization that it is a partnership – if only men started to really realize and understand the phenomena of a partnership they would stop taking the things women do for them for granted. My aim is to teach my son that the basis of a good relationship is respect and respect means to treat your woman counterparts as your equal.

Now that I am older I realize that my parents were only trying to protect me and my naivety the best way they could. They where surprised at my fierceness and hoped that I would mellow down as I got older (which I really have). I still have that feistiness’ in me but I know how to control it. I believe we all are waiting for that one chance where we can prove ourselves, not to anyone else but to our inner soul -- I too am waiting for that one chance as a woman to make a difference. But if you want to make a different right now that will shape the future tomorrow let it be to teach our sons to respect women and treat them truly as equals.