Hardly a month back, we read about and saw visuals of the Guwahati incident where a teenage girl was molested outside a bar, in public, by a group of 10-20 men. And not one person came to her help. Not one vehicle stopped to help the girl.
A couple of days back, I read about the attempted rape and subsequent murder of a 25 year-old lawyer in Mumbai by the security guard of the building where she was staying.
And I got to asking myself , "Where am I safe?"
"Is there any place left where I can be and not feel threatened?"
We are not foolish to actually believe that the security guards in our buildings and offices will be our protectors but then we also do not think that they will be the perpetrators of premeditated and heinous crimes.
As single working women, living far away from our families, we are on our own. Literally. We have only ourselves.
And no, not all Indians are my brothers and sisters, like they made us recite in school. Brothers and sisters come to your help. The majority of the people won't.
It's been five years since I left home to pursue a college degree and a career and there hasn't been a single day when I could walk down the streets without worrying about getting touched, groped or molested.
I live in constant fear of being violated. It's a fear that I share with every other girl.
And the time of the day doesn't make much of a difference really. I am as scared at 2 in the afternoon as I am at 10 in the night. Maybe a little less but just the same.
There are dangers lurking every where, in every corner. At any time. It's a minefield. You never know when you will step on one and it will blow off.
And above all, there's the feeling of complete helplessness when you realize that your safety is not in your hands anymore. You can take all the caution in the world but people with the intention to do harm will always find a way to harm you.
Safety has become only an illusion, even if you do feel safe. And it takes only one small incident for that to break.
The streets have never been safe for us women. The home is no longer safe now.
All we can do is pray to a non-existent being and ask for protection.
A couple of days back, I read about the attempted rape and subsequent murder of a 25 year-old lawyer in Mumbai by the security guard of the building where she was staying.
And I got to asking myself , "Where am I safe?"
"Is there any place left where I can be and not feel threatened?"
We are not foolish to actually believe that the security guards in our buildings and offices will be our protectors but then we also do not think that they will be the perpetrators of premeditated and heinous crimes.
As single working women, living far away from our families, we are on our own. Literally. We have only ourselves.
And no, not all Indians are my brothers and sisters, like they made us recite in school. Brothers and sisters come to your help. The majority of the people won't.
It's been five years since I left home to pursue a college degree and a career and there hasn't been a single day when I could walk down the streets without worrying about getting touched, groped or molested.
I live in constant fear of being violated. It's a fear that I share with every other girl.
And the time of the day doesn't make much of a difference really. I am as scared at 2 in the afternoon as I am at 10 in the night. Maybe a little less but just the same.
There are dangers lurking every where, in every corner. At any time. It's a minefield. You never know when you will step on one and it will blow off.
And above all, there's the feeling of complete helplessness when you realize that your safety is not in your hands anymore. You can take all the caution in the world but people with the intention to do harm will always find a way to harm you.
Safety has become only an illusion, even if you do feel safe. And it takes only one small incident for that to break.
The streets have never been safe for us women. The home is no longer safe now.
All we can do is pray to a non-existent being and ask for protection.
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