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A sexist article in the Wall Street Journal asked Dr Jill Biden to drop the honorific Dr to just be First Lady, now that her husband is President Elect of the US.
Our world has moved beyond ahead on the road to feminism and women’s achievements, yet most people with their mindsets in the 18th century cannot see women accomplishing their own goals even now. Why is that?
“Madam First Lady – Mrs. Biden- Jill-Kiddo: a bit of advice on what may seem small but I think is not an unimportant matter. Any chance you might drop the “Dr.” before your name?”
These are the introductory lines of a sexist article published in the Wall Street Journal where the author, a man, asks the future First Lady of the United States Dr. Jill Biden to drop “Dr.” from her title because apparently, “it sounds and feels fraudulent” to him.
The author made more sexist remarks, such as “Forget the small thrill of being Dr.Jill, and settle for the larger thrill of living for the next four years in the best public housing in the world as First Lady Jill Biden.”
Dr. Jill Biden who has been an educator for more than three decades and earned her Doctorate from the University of Delaware in 2007 was made the target of this piece because our society cannot comprehend the thought of a woman accomplishing something beyond her assigned traditional roles.
This is not the first time that a woman was asked to diminish her achievements for the comfort of others.
For too long, women have been asked to slow down their pace so that things don’t get ‘too difficult’ for others. But how many times have women been asked to fight against the sexist mindset that prevents them from celebrating their achievements that they have rightly earned? Not a lot.
In a Linkedin post, CEO of PepsiCo Indra Nooyi revealed that she was asked by her mother to “leave that crown in the garage” after stepping into her house. For too long, women have been conditioned to believe that jobs and careers are meant to come secondary to any other roles they play in their lives while most men aren’t pressured to comply with such claims.
Women with bustling careers have often made the decision to leave their careers to devote their time to their families, sometimes voluntarily and sometimes reluctantly.
We’re aware of so many Indian women in the public eye who have taken the decision to leave their careers behind. Like Anjali Tendulkar, a doctor by profession who left her career behind to raise a family with cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. Or some very talented women among actors who have cut short their career post marriage.
Similarly, former First Ladies of the United States that we know much more about than earlier ones – Michelle Obama and Hilary Clinton, had both taken leave of absence from their brilliant careers to support their respective husbands and were just the First Ladies then.
Data from a survey on the Harvard Business Review reveals that when high achieving and highly educated professional women leave their jobs after becoming mothers, the vast majority of them leave reluctantly and because they have no resort. In subtle ways, they are communicated to, that they are no longer considered ‘players’.
So many people in our society are threatened by ambitious women, especially by those who proudly own their accomplishments. We do not need to humble down our accomplishments to make others feel comfortable.
A thought that seems to be proven by the fact that the author of the piece, Joseph Epstein, faced a severe backlash from readers, and his name has been wiped from the website of the University with which he had been associated as a lecturer.
In Jill Biden’s words, “Together, we will build a world where the accomplishments of our daughters will be celebrated, rather than diminished.”
It is a hope that going forward, young girls and women will not feel this pressure of conditioning to believe that they need to put their careers aside, and that they are supposed to preside by this sexist belief.
Images source: YouTube
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People say that women are the greatest enemies of women. I vehemently disagree. It is the patriarchal mindset that makes women believe in the wrong ideology.
The entire world celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024. It should be a joyful day, but unfortunately, not all women are entitled to this privilege, as violence against women is at its peak. The experience of oppression pushes many women to choose freedom. As far as patriotism is concerned, feminism is not a cup of tea in this society.
What happens when a woman decides to stand up for herself? Does this world easily accept the decisions of women in this society? What inspires them to be free of the clutches of the oppression that women have faced for ages? Most of the time, women do not get the chance to decide for themselves. Their lives are always at the mercy of someone, which can be their parents, siblings, husband, or children.
In some cases, women do not feel the need to make any decisions. They are taught to obey the patriarchal system, which makes them believe that they are right. In my family, I was never taught to make decisions on my own. It was always my parents who bought dresses and all that I needed.
It is shameful that in today's world too, women are abused and even killed for giving birth to a girl, and the infant's life is also of no value.
Trigger Warning: This deals with domestic violence, suicide, and violence against women, and may be triggering to survivors.
I am so glad that the esteemed courts are now giving the much-required verdicts regarding certain ideologies that were not at all entertained earlier. I mean we all have studied this much biology at our school level and it is our duty (our generation) to educate our elders about it.
Why someone have to lose a life to bring such awareness to the society. Delhi High Court gave this judgement concerning a case that filed by the deceased daughter’s parents against her in-laws. She committed suicide as she was harassed and tortured for dowry and giving birth to two daughters.
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