Hello-
Thanks for checking in! Brave- because... you know how we do things around here.
It's International Women's Day- again! A day to celebrate the achievements of women in all facets of life- because, getting through life as a women is an achievement in and of itself, right?
But why is that?
Why are we celebrating our achievements, however great, without looking at the root of why they deserve celebration?
What have we overcome, and why have there been problems in the first place? Who causes these? What perpetuates these?
Well. It's a bit complicated, but also not.
International Women's Day is kind of like, having a day for people who get assaulted, and manage to survive. And society profits mightily, not from the assailant, but other activities of these perpetrators and others with whom they associate.
But we have a day to focus on the survivor, for making it through- and getting on with life.
But what about the perpetrator?
The focus is skewed. It's totally off, really- because that survivor doesn't need accolades for surviving. They need the assurance that it will never happen again.
The assailant needs to know that there is a high probability, if not near certainty, that their actions will not be tolerated and that they will face severe repercussions, making continuing such activities highly unattractive- the pay off is not there.
Because, it isn't actually everyone who is a direct assailant. But a lot of us are- way too many, in some way or anther- but not everyone.
What little things can people do to show that they do not associate with such activity? They are nondescript- anybody could be a participant. How do you show it? The onus, in essence, should be entirely on the individual with the advantage.
So this International Women's Day- like every other one- I'd prefer the focus be on that. How this mess has evolved and how we can help it to rapidly improve its trajectory.
Let's look at both sides of the coin. It is a really big coin.
Emma of Zimt
PS - It is a marathon, not a sprint. Enjoy that cup of water at every checkpoint and get celebrated this IWD. You gotta refuel somehow- I know!