Equality between the sexes in my opinion is never about each taking on the other's attributes to survive the world. However, that sometimes may be necessary as a growth tool.
But at other times, it can aid inauthenticity. Equality, in its true sense, would mean equal opportunity, equal perception of talent and ability without having to change yourself overtly to demand worthy treatment.
So in layman’s terms: I don’t have to drop my femininity, aesthetics and loving disposition as a woman to be taken seriously in the world as a man would be in a structured double jacketed grey suit.
Can I wear a floral dress paired with a formal jacket and kitten heels and still be considered for a promotion because I'm good at my job? Yes, I can, thank you! Can I still retain my thousand watt sunshine smile, my childlike enthusiasm for a new emerging world and still be considered a pioneer and a revolutionary? Most certainly.
Can I be creative, attractive, smart, sexy, sassy and still command respect, be honoured and not deal with insubordination on a daily basis because of the way I look (which is great by the way!)? Yes, of course. Can I be everything that I'm innately inclined to be and still be deemed a powerful force to reckon with and be considered a leader? It’s my stage, yo! This is what I mean by equality… the ability to be my feminine, best self and yet be considered no less capable than a man.
Equal opportunity can be created by changing our medieval mindsets about gender roles and about opening up to the possibility of powerful female leadership in the world. The world needs to know that there is nothing to fear when you have a woman take charge and lead the way.
She is trained for everything that she has set out to do even though she may not look the part because traditionally, roles were defined a certain way. As we step into a new decade, we need to adopt a new kind of flexible thought process to accommodate change. We have to look at people as souls that affect change in the environment and not merely as bodies that follow stereotypes.
— Coordinated by Anju Warrier
