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Recently, Actor-Director Renuka Shahane spoke up for sex workers in response to a common cliché about them being “dishonourable criminals”.
Singer Suchitra Krishnamoorthy was in the news recently, when she asserted in a tweet that: “Amma always said “Money is not everything. Even criminals and whores have money. What matters is not money but character and integrity.”
Amma always said ” Money is not everything.Even criminals and whores have money. What matters is not money but character and integrity” I truly truly understand her words only today. Jeez ive never felt more proud of my middle class roots 😊 — Suchitra Krishnamoorthi (@suchitrak) March 25, 2019
Amma always said ” Money is not everything.Even criminals and whores have money. What matters is not money but character and integrity”
I truly truly understand her words only today.
Jeez ive never felt more proud of my middle class roots 😊
— Suchitra Krishnamoorthi (@suchitrak) March 25, 2019
Actor-Director Renuka Shahane countered it with a tweet saying that: “Whores sell what is theirs. Criminals take what is others. Whores are often pushed into their profession due to human trafficking….”
Whores sell what is theirs. Criminals take what is others. Whores are often pushed into their profession due to human trafficking at ages as young as 7. Does any child have the right to say “no” at that age? Whores are pushed into prostitution by people they trust explicitly 2/4 https://t.co/qQkwPSGztZ — Renuka Shahane (@renukash) March 26, 2019
Whores sell what is theirs. Criminals take what is others. Whores are often pushed into their profession due to human trafficking at ages as young as 7. Does any child have the right to say “no” at that age? Whores are pushed into prostitution by people they trust explicitly 2/4 https://t.co/qQkwPSGztZ
— Renuka Shahane (@renukash) March 26, 2019
This whole episode once again has brought to focus the implications of sex work by women and how a society that is okay with buying sexual services (usually by men) condemns and looks down upon the women who sell it.
Prostitution or sex work is popularly believed to be the oldest human profession and yet remains riddled in shame, taboo and now an increasingly violent and commercial human trafficking underworld.
Studies indicate that there are over 800,000 sex workers in India. However unofficial figures place these numbers far higher. What is tragic is that often, because of the nature of their profession where their bodies are their workplaces so to say, they are objectified and dehumanised to the extent of not receiving even their basic human rights.
Their uncertain status in Indian law often makes people perceive sex workers as criminals whereas they are victims of a vicious system in most cases. Common clichés like “a sex worker cannot be raped” make them more vulnerable to not just insults but also sexual violence that often goes unaddressed.
Equating sex work with crime and ‘dishonour’ robs the women involved in it and their dependent children of many rights including health care and legal recourse.
The language of social morality calling it “shameful work” and “bad money” denies it the dignity it deserves as any other work. Sadly in India, most girls and women in prostitution come from underprivileged communities and that further robs them of any agency in their bodies and sexuality.
Ending the shame and ignominy around sex work and recognising sex workers as equal citizens earning a living is definitely the need of the hour, as is the case in several advanced countries and societies.
Pooja Priyamvada is an author, columnist, translator, online content & Social Media consultant, and poet. An awarded bi-lingual blogger she is a trained psychological/mental health first aider, mindfulness & grief facilitator, emotional wellness trainer, reflective read more...
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As parents, we put a piece of our hearts out into this world and into the custody of the teachers at school and tuition and can only hope and pray that they treat them well.
Trigger Warning: This speaks of physical and emotional violence by teachers, caste based abuse, and contains some graphic details, and may be triggering for survivors.
When I was in Grade 10, I flunked my first preliminary examination in Mathematics. My mother was in a panic. An aunt recommended the Maths classes conducted by the Maths sir she knew personally. It was a much sought-after class, one of those classes that you signed up for when you were in the ninth grade itself back then, all those decades ago. My aunt kindly requested him to take me on in the middle of the term, despite my marks in the subject, and he did so as a favour.
Math had always been a nightmare. In retrospect, I wonder why I was always so terrified of math. I’ve concluded it is because I am a head in the cloud person and the rigor of the step by step process in math made me lose track of what needed to be done before I was halfway through. In today’s world, I would have most probably been diagnosed as attention deficit. Back then we had no such definitions, no such categorisations. Back then we were just bright sparks or dim.
'Sania denied fairy-tale ending: suffers loss in AUS open final' says a news headline. Is this the best we can do? Is it a fitting tribute to one of the finest athletes we have in our country?
Sania Mirza bid an emotional and tearful farewell to her Grand Slam journey as a runner up in the mixed doubles final. Headlines read –
“Sania Mirza breaks down in tears while recalling glorious career after defeat in Grand Slam’
“Sania denied fairy-tale ending: suffers loss in AUS open final”
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