How did that woman get promoted?
“Duh, because she’s a woman.”
the ease with which this statement is made,
breaks my heart;
and everything women, today, stand for.
The battle to break the boundaries,
the four walls –
that once kept us captive, long ago,
and in some places, to date.
yet again, gone unnoticed.
Seems like there won’t be a day
where “she” won’t face new hurdles.
A battle over is only the beginning of yet another
for her,
simply because “she” is.
Being a woman is a battle enough,
being subject to society’s mindset
is far greater than one.
in a world, where “she” fights
for education and for equality,
for rights and for respect.
now, how should she prove to you
that she has already proven herself?
time and again, time and again,
time and again and yet again.
how did that woman get promoted?
“Easy, because she’s a woman.”
bingo! that is correct.
It is only because she’s a woman
that she knows she has to fight,
prove herself more than twice.
It’s only because she’s a woman,
that she knows she has the right
and a will to win what a “he” might.
It’s only because she’s a woman,
that she works that hard,
harder than you’ll ever know,
only to still be considered an unequal.
still, she keeps going.
undeterred, unfettered;
the high-spirited, second-class citizen that she is.
with all her might combined,
even when the chance of it happening is only a “might”.
It’s only because she’s a woman –
that she knows to struggle and strives to overcome
the hurdles, that you’ll never see.
the battles, that you’ll never know.
daily, she does
what you can’t even imagine.
with hopes, that someday –
she could make it here.
and even now, she will continually work hard.
all this, only because she’s a woman.
every day, she is a work in progress.
working hard, hustling;
proving herself, non-stop.
and what you think of her, is her last concern.
instead, she just keeps going,
undeterred, unfettered, unbothered;
the high-spirited, second-class citizen that “she” is.
Isha Prakash is a law student at Government Law College, Mumbai.
Featured image credit: Tim Mossholder