‘Female blackout’ message doing the rounds
Shivani Bhakoo
tribune News Service
Ludhiana, April 17
A message started making rounds on the social media on Monday, which goes: “Female blackout from 8 am-9 pm. It is a movement to show what the world might be without women. Your profile photo should just be a black square so that men wonder where women are. Pass it only to women. It is for a project against woman abuse. It is no joke, share it...”
By afternoon, the display pictures of most of the women in the city on Facebook and Whatsapp turned out to be “black-squares”. Several men also expressed their views on what the world would be without women.
Ashwani Bhalla, senior faculty member at SCD Government College, said the country would be a “hell” without women. “How can you imagine a society without mothers, daughters, wives and sisters? We totally condemn crime against women. The recent incidents have brought shame to India. The educated society today wants to send their children abroad as they feel that India is not a safe place for women. The respective government should take the matter seriously and strict punishment should be given to guilty,” Bhalla said.
A businessman, Vikram Kanwar, said there would be no life without women. “There would be no bonding, no families, no affection in the society if there are no women. It is females who nurture us, feed us, and make us strong— emotionally, mentally and physically by providing love and affection. Festivals hold meaning due to the presence of women. This society that we live in is a dual responsibility of both male and female and the absence of one will jeopardize the entire system. Crime against women needs to be stopped and we must take a strong stand for the women,” said Kanwar.
Shavinder Singh feels he would rather like to live in a world without “monster-like” men. “Without a mother’s care, a wife’s love and a daughter’s tender emotions, a man will be like a worthless machine running without purpose.” He requested the respective governments to take the responsibility in a dignified manner and make the country “worth-living” for women.
Rohit Puniani, dealing in real estate, said women should be treated in a dignified manner in the society. “A man is born from a woman’s womb, let us not forget this. Stop treating women as an object and start giving her due respect as she plays all roles given to her with utmost responsibility.”
