Small Changes for International Women's Day
We hear men can be insensitive and very practical, but I have seen young men transform into caring and senstive people. I would like to share some stories of young men with whom I have been associated through our workshops, but with whom I have had very intense and close interactions over a period of time.
Saiam a student from Jamia, was like any other youngster who had joined our programme for a certificate. When we took up a session on gender and gender based discrimination, he vhelmentaly denined that any such thing as gender based dicrimination exsisted. He also mentioned that nothing of this sort ever happened at his house and he and his sisters were treated equally at home.
When he went back home during vacations, after completing the programme with us, he noticed something which he had never noticed before. When he and his sisters sat down for dinnner one night, he was allowed to have the chicken leg for dinner and his sisters were asked to leave that for Saiam. He could not believe that there was in reality some difference in the way his family treated him and his sisters. He started feeling very guilty and told his mother what he felt. His mother inturn told him that he should not take all of this too seriously and this is the way it is!!
Once he returned from his vacations he could not wait to share this incident with us and that he could not visibily see that discrimination based on gender did exsist and that he would like to reduce it in his family.
I am really proud of what Saiam did and also about the courage he has to come back and accept the change in his views.
This is just one small change which lead to a complete transformation of a young man.
Through our programme we try to bring in these changes in many such young people and is satisying to see that they too want to break the shackels.
I am proud to be associated with these young men.
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