Growing up as a girl, you eventually come to the realisation that your body is not your own to do with as you please. Avoiding stares and seemingly misplaced touches, you start navigating life with blinders on. When you step out in clothes shorter than the unsaid rule, claiming your body as your own, you can’t help but whither and tug at your hemline subconsciously. You avoid certain streets and certain forms of public transport. You tell yourself you’ll fight some other time; you just don’t have the energy today. What do you do then?
At first glance, the #IWillGoOut march that women across the country are going to participate in today, is a move to express solidarity with the Bengaluru mass molestation victims, the most recent notch on the uproar belt. A protest against the sentiment that “these things happen”. But the years of pent-up anger is palpable.
Back in the city, daily harassment of women and other marginalised groups continues. “Street harassment has become so normalised. We need to be asking the right questions,” says Rachel Bali, part of the ‘I Will Go Out’ collective, a group consisting of several organisations and individuals, who is involved in organising the march in Delhi. Prompted by the Bengaluru incident, the collective decided it was time to reclaim a right to public spaces and demand equitable access for all.
“Stepping out on the streets has become increasingly dangerous for women. We face the threat of all kinds of violence, whether it’s harassment or acid attacks. It’s time we question the status quo,” says Shruthi Kutty, a member of the collective and organiser of the Mumbai chapter. Kutty explains that the gathering being held today is to provide a safe space for women to voice their stories, free of judgement and disbelief. It’s also the stepping stone to a much larger movement that the collective plans on continuing even after the march.
The three main areas of concern for the ‘I Will Go Out’ movement are regarding safety of women in public spaces, easier processes to report crimes against women, and compulsory gender sensitisation training. Without any external funding, the #IWillGoOut march was set up in less than two weeks and will see individuals across 20 cities and towns gather in public spaces to demand their rights. While work on a national manifesto to present to the President is underway, the organisers will also be submitting region-specific petitions to the State police department, Ministry of Home Affairs and Women and Child Welfare Ministry in the respective States with signatures of the protestors. The aim is to increase safety measures, wipe out the culture of victim-blaming and ensure equitable access to spaces for all individuals.
To best illustrate their stance, the collective refers to a quote by Shilpa Phadke, an assistant professor at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences as well as one of the co-writers of the seminal book ‘ Why Loiter? ’. “What many people don’t seem to get is that the choice is not between violence and no violence. Even when one’s homes are not violent, the choice being offered is either to go out in public and negotiate violence or to experience the violence of restricted mobility. Some might choose to go and negotiate the violence. Some might choose to stay in and feel enraged or just resigned to this state of affairs. But this rage and resignation are also part of the experience of violence.”
The #IWillGoOut March will take place from 5 p.m. today in Mumbai at the Veer Kotwal Udyaan in Dadar (West). For details about the cause, visit the I Will Go Out Facebook page and join in online by tweeting with #IWillGoOut
