Some news don't just remain stories - they become your stories, echoing your fears, your pains. Some stories stay with you, breaking the barriers to shroud you in the grief that is hard to shake off. Some haunt you long enough to initiate an action for change.
The story of the girl brutally gang raped and assaulted has culminated in her imminent death. The violent and gruesome incident touched a chord buried deep in our soul somewhere, a chord that would awaken us from our apathy to the condition of women in India. I would like to believe that the story broke all cultural barriers and all people "human" could identify with the violent incident.
The act was gruesome, but what was amazing was the girl's brave and courageous will to fight for her life. I salute the girl who is inspiring all the other women to protests for safer streets. In a society where women just represent "honor" -where stories of girls raped, committing suicide is the norm because of rape is considered "shameful" - no not for the rapist but the victim, this story of a girl fighting tooth and nail to live is inspirational to say the least.
For me it is not the act that caught my attention, there have always been such violent crimes committed against women in India - in fact the same day, there were couple of more similar stories reported from different parts of the country. For me and thousands of others, it was her desire to survive, her desire to seek justice, her fighting spirit that will stay with me for ever. Incredibly they had managed to just break her down physically - her spirit was intact!
It's not enough to cry for a girl who has unwillingly just by her spirit, touched a million hearts , her reaction to the awful incident triggering a change. We all wanted her to live, a beacon of hope , but today instead of politicizing her death, lets make it a safer place for women in India. Let us all start at home, with women independent and strong, teaching their daughters to be brave and bold, teaching their sons to respect not just their sisters,but the whole race. And as we all know teaching is not words, it is action.
Dad's your sons are watching every move you make, every time you belittle your wife, you are teaching your son that it is okay, mothers each injustice, insult you ignore , you are teaching your daughter and son both that abusing women is acceptable.
RIP -the brave girl, and let us all think what she would have wanted if she were alive. A change for sure - a change in attitude, in justice system and our relation of women to honor.
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