A Tribute to Her

She is a princess to her Father,

And the apple of the eyes of her Mother.

Revel she does in being cared for,

But all she yearns for, is the world, to conquer.

A world with unexplored options many,

Where she isn’t expected to be all clingy.

In 2011, the United Nations General Assembly adopted 11th October as the International Day of the Girl Child, to recognize girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face globally. A very basic question that arises is, what is the point of having an International observance day dedicated to the girl child?

If we think about it, almost half of humanity has been dealing with a millennia old assault on its integrity. There is no inequality that demands more breaking. If we don’t engage all the stakeholders in a conversation and deliberation to fix the situation, we are culpable not only of cowardice but also of complicity in humanity’s oldest cultural crime. The issues that the girls face need to be communicated because silence is what allows people to suffer without recourse and allows for crimes to go unpunished.

Observance days such as this, increase awareness of issues faced by girls around the world. And it would be the understatement of the century if we continue to operate under the delusion that we know enough. We simply don’t.

In the world today, there are about a billion illiterate adults of which two-thirds are women. Worldwide, girls aged 5 to 14 spend more than 160 million hours on household chores than boys of the same age. Don’t they too deserve the same carefree lives their counterparts lead? Globally, one in four girls is married before age 18. Literacy rates of girls in India are even worse. Female literacy rates are at a dismal 65.46% while their male counterparts are at 82.14%.

We have read enough about the woes of the girl child, yet have done little to nothing to carve a better future for her. We hide behind imagined notions of tradition and social norms while waiting for change to happen. It’s high time we initiate change this second, this day. It’s better to start small, and at the basics, for it’s no secret that miracles don’t happen overnight. Changing our mindsets and eradicating the social expectations that linger till date are some of the smallest things we can do as individuals. Educating girls and raising their literacy rates will also go a long way in ensuring that the situation improves.

Today, we celebrate the day of the girl child, but let us not go back to forgetting her tomorrow. Celebrating her importance is a step in the right direction but we need many more such steps. A vision to achieve gender equality requires each and every one of us. So let us all come together for a brighter future regardless of gender.

Touched, skies are, with wings unfettered,

And boundaries crossed with will be untethered.

Honing her will, she sits, as you read,

And soar she will, when it is time to lead.

Right now, she may be a teenager,

But in years 13, she’ll be the reason behind changes, major.

This article was written for Festember: The Renaissance by Nandini Ranganathan,