Most American women dream about the day when they will walk down the aisle to be married to their life-long partner for a life of passionate love and blissful commitment. For the women of India, marriage can create the dreadful image of being burned alive by the hands of their “loving husbands”. According to the National Crime Bureau, a young Indian bride is victim to the heinous, violent act of bride burning every 90 minutes. Bride burning, or dowry death, happens when a young bride is murdered, or motivated to commit suicide, by her husband or in laws due to the bride family’s refusal or insufficient dowry payment. Dowry is a practice of the bride’s family providing the groom’s family money or goods in exchange for their daughter’s marriage.
With a continual rise throughout the decades, this act is now responsible for the death of over 8,000 women per year-- particularly in India. Bride burning is the most popular murder method for a number of reasons. For starters, kerosene is cheap and readily available. On top of that, Indian women commonly wear Sari which is a highly combustible garment and makes the murder harder to trace. However, despite its popularity, there are few perspectives leading to the origins of how this ritual came to exist. According to Avnita Lakhani’s report on bride burning, titled “The Elephant in the Room Is Out of Control", she points to the rise of dowry as a direct contributor to the phenomenon. In essence, dowry cultivates opportunities for greed and opportunists looking to gain a higher economic status; as the groom’s family gains more status, more dowry is demanded. Consequently, the bride’s family can go bankrupt or refuse to meet these demands, resulting in the attempted murder of the bride. This chiefly makes the murderous husband available for remarry, thus perpetuating the cycle to gain more wealth. Another perspective reflects on the role of gender in India’s highly patriarchal society. Before women are even born, their role is already defined and ultimately placed lower than men. Rather than being seen as a person of value, she is viewed as another mouth to feed and an
It is sad to think that even with legislative laws in place, women are still not protected from such violent crimes. If real change is to be sustained, the patriach mentality perpetuated within their government and society must be addressed by creating initiatives to prevent women from receiving inadequate justice. One issue that could be hindering progression is the complete absence of any mobilized public campaign for the past 25 years. Although there are grassroots organizations contributing to the cause, advocates still face resistance from
In some countries, women are discriminated against by laws that do not protect from violence in the home. Police and persecutors sometimes refuse to help women abused in the home because of the false assumption that these women bring on the abuse themselves. Women that attempt to testify against their husbands may lose custody of their children. For women of these nations, there is no way out and nobody to listen (web.amnesty.org).
The wife 's desires for a girl also can be unselfish in their eyes by saying they are protecting them from a life of poverty since they had not yet had a son who could provide their prosperity. “Dowry deaths” are also an age old tradition that is a custom for the religion. But with the heavy problem of gendercide, the government outlawed the use of a dowry. But since tradition is so heavy and rich it still happens. The families want to live up to expectations and even if it is not “required” it still looks good for a family to compensate the other in a social standing. The problem with this is that they still see females as burdens even though there is no requirement to provide a dowry. It is the age-old tradition to give a dowry that is hurting the females. The old ways need to be adapted, and the culture itself needs to understand that it is okay not to provide a dowry. This is the only way change for females can come and ensure them a success and longevity in their
Gender-based violence is made possible by the ideology of sexism in Indian traditional culture which argues that women are worth less than men in the sense of having less power, status, privilege, and access to resources that is more prevalent in middle class and low caste families.
During the 1980s and 1900s, domestic violence was one of the most unreported crimes that involve females and males getting hurt and dying. Kicking, choking, killing, and saying brutal or despise words that could hurt the victims physically or emotionally are considered domestic violence. In fact, many victims are afraid to seek for help. According to “The Domestic Violence Resource Center (DVRC), women account for approximately 85 percent of all intimate partner violence, with women aged 20-24 at greater risk” (Batten, par.16). Most pregnant women are at risk as well. “But underlying approach is still one that assumes the perpetrators are men and the victims are woman” (Haugen, par. 1). Moreover, both males and females believe that domestic violence is a solution to their issues.
Statistics like these outlines the severity and seriousness of the domestic epidemic in Canada. This is an epidemic with dramatic and negative effects not only affecting individuals, but communities as a whole, it is a crime that knows no economic, racial, ethnic or religious limits. “At some point in their lives, more than forty percent of women will experience violence, and in most cases this violence is in the hands of a man.” Although research may suggest that these statistics may be under-reported as many of these assaults go unrecorded, this is largely due to society’s refusal to recognize such violence as an infringement on women’s human rights. The violence Canada has experienced against women can be attributed to the result of a power structure that exist in society. While there has been a widespread recognition of this type of violence, it remains the case, that there are many areas of society where women are still subjected to this type of violence and in some way are seen as responsible for the man’s behaviour.
Progress has slowly been made on behalf of victim’s rights. However, the statistics remain disheartening. According to the National Center for Victims of Crime, one in every four women will experience domestic violence during their lifetime. In one year, 389,100 women and 78,180 men were victimized and, on average, three people a day are killed by an intimate partner. Even though the majority of victims are women, any person is in danger of becoming a victim themselves.
Finally, we need to shine a light into dark corners, where the women abusers don’t want you to look. Darkness is the friend to fear, violence, and verbal assault. No woman should believe that they deserve to be treated inhumanely by any person. No excuse validates any type of anger or violence against women. No word or acts are so powerful that a woman should lose their self-esteem and soul. Any form of violence against women such as domestic violence, verbal assault, or gender inequality is a problem that affects a great number of women in our nation. It should never be tolerated. We need to create a culture where gender inequality is not tolerated. Where men and women can aspire as far as their dreams can take them.
Domestic violence against women is a crucial problem in the world that not enough importance is given to. All that must stop now. The time for action is here. The abuse must end!
Sati is defined as “a Hindu practice whereby a widow immolates herself on the pyre of her husband” (Dictonary.com). Sati also means righteous, women throughout the Hindu myths were willing to do anything for the man that they loved. This symbolized the perfect Indian wife to any man. Imagine being a married couple in the Hindu religion, as the wife you have to prove yourself to your husband. According to About.com it goes into brief detail of the idea of marriage in the Hindu religion; “after marriage the Hindu women lead the men by keeping the lustful propensities under control. While married, thought of any other man does not enter the mind of a Hindu lady until she loses her faith in her husband due to his consistent misbehavior and 'don't care' attitude” (Rajhans). Basically in this commitment women must keep the male under control and keep the loving relationship alive and well. Suddenly, during your marriage your husband suddenly dies and you are now left as a widow. How would you feel? Would you mope around and have sorrow for the months to come? Or would you go to the extent of suicide to be with your husband once again. Some say sati is a voluntary act chosen by the newly widowed woman to end her life by being burnt to death at her husband’s pyre. But there are moments in history that Sati was forced upon these women, some ever were dragged to their burning death (Daniel). “The custom of burning the widow on her dead husband's pyre probably did not evolve from religious background but from social background” (Daniels). This paper will explore the horrible act of Sati and how it was practiced throughout history.
Arranged marriages is main process to find women in Hindu culture. 90% of marriage are done by arrange in this culture (Kapoor). Web. Arranged marriage is the main way for marriage in Nepali culture. Marriage is an important social bond between families. When a child reaches marriageable age, the family elders are responsible for finding a suitable mate of the appropriate caste, education level, and social match. The bride’s family provides usually a dowry to the groom’s family what they demand. But nowadays it’s not necessary. A dowry is illegal in this culture these days. The cost of a wedding is really expensive mostly to the bride’s family. In the past days arranged marriage was really hard for brides and grooms in this culture. The reason was they didn’t know each other and the interesting thing was they never even saw each other’s face until the marriage date. Hindu castes do not generally approve of cross-cousin (out of a caste) marriage, which is preferred among some Mongolian ethnic groups. Among some groups, a bride’s price substitutes for a dowry. In others, clan exogamy (choosing partner outside of one’s clan) is an important feature of marriages. Until recently, it was common to marry more than one women, but now it is illegal and found only in the older generation and in remote areas.
Haj-Yehia (2000) stated that in cases of severe violence , it is recommend for battered women to seek help from social services or report to the police . However, in Arab societies , it isn 't desirable to involve the police in cases of domestic violence or even to reveal family secrets . Clearly , it is a painful step for a wife to go to the police to stop the violence against her because there are barriers that prevent her from doing such a step such as her children , her husband 's threats and even losing her family support . So, It is obvious that this solution is not working due to the barriers that deter battered women from seeking help . Also , in Arab societies , the police are identified as an oppressive , punitive , and exploiting agent , and not as a protective agent that provides the welfare of women . Thus , the best way to reduce women abuse is by taking legal action toward the batterer . There have to be laws that prevent a husband from beating his wife under any circumstance , and a punishment if violence occurs . Moreover , women must have backing ; a support system to protect and defend them . Social rules have to be reformed and women no longer have to accept this humiliating behavior . This solution will give women the courage to report to the police without feeling afraid of causing harm to their
Violence against women is a global problem that affects people and countries everywhere in varying degrees. The World Health Organization (WHO) revealed, through
Amanda Hitchcock. 2001. “Rising Number of Dowry Deaths in India.” Annual Editions: Anthropology 11/12, 34th Edition. Elvio Angeloni. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
He usually arrives dressed in his wedding attire on the back of a horse, or sometimes on the back of an elephant. “The wedding altar (mandapa) is built the day of and the groom is welcomed by his future mother in law where his feet are then washed and he is offered milk and honey. His sister in law will attempt to steal his shoes and if she succeeds, the groom must pay her to get them back” (beau-coup.com). At the wedding venue the bride waits for the groom in a room covered in garland, when the groom arrives they exchange garland. After this, the brides family will welcome the grooms family to the wedding. Like Christian weddings, the father of the bride gives the bride away at the wedding, this is called a Kanyadaan. A priest will facilitate the marriage by reciting mantras or holy hymns, but the bride and groom marry each other. The bride and groom are considered married when the groom ties a thread that symbolizes his vow to care for the bride. He ties it in three knots that symbolizes the gods, Brahma, Vishnu and Masheshwara. The ceremony takes place around a fire and the god, Agni is considered the witness to the union. “The bride and the groom then circle the fire seven times, in a clockwise direction, called Saat Phere which signifies seven goals of married life which include religious and moral duties, prosperity, spiritual salvation and liberation, and sensual gratification” (Gullapalli
Arranging a marriage for a young girl is a simple way for the family to collect dowry money. For families living in poverty this is something they looked forward to since the birth of their daughter. Furthermore, having one less mouth to feed makes supporting the remaining children less demanding on the parents. In addition to financial reasons for the practice, in times of war an arranged marriage is a way to ensure that the child bride remains safe and out of harms way. An important aspect of most religions is purity. “The very idea that young women have a right to select their own partners—that