"Don’t react to such small things"
Often this exact sentence “Don’t react to such small things” has been said to me and many of my friends, when we try to speak up for the discrimination faced by women accumulated for years in a patriarchal society. It makes us question if bearing mean words like “Oh! Being a girl you have to learn to do the dishes” is easier than replying with a constructive argument like “All people in general should know how to do basic chores” as it brings about heated debates on the conventional gender roles present in the society.
One such instance is society making it feel as though texting inappropriate texts like texting sexually suggestive texts, making inappropriate jokes, unsolicited photos of private parts is a minor inconvenience a person faces. Although this causes emotional distress to the person on the receiving end.
I was 15 years old when I received a message from a stranger through a messaging app asking for inappropriate photos. One fine day I began checking on the request message’s section which I often did not. The 15 years old me was horrified, frightened, and appalled looking at the image of a man’s genitalia on my phone screen. At that very moment, my mind was blank. After realizing what happened I blocked and reported that person. It had a great impact on me as I was frightened to check the request section for quite some time. I recall, many of my friends sharing similar incidents happening to them. It is clear that these incidents occur frequently.
Although these, ‘supposedly small things’ seem small on the surface, it does not feel small to those who experience them. They often instill fear, and scrutinize every action we take, every word we choose to speak to hopefully not make these ‘small instances’ occur again. It leaves a big void in our hearts and minds for days, weeks, and sometimes for life.
It is therefore important for all of us to wisely think over how our actions and our words have the ability to affect positively and negatively the lives of others. Taking accountability for our actions is necessary to create a society safe and just for all.