Remember the blog post about the Pink Ladies Special Bangalore Municipal Transport Corporation bus?
Now there's a pink taxi in Puebla, Mexico too.
And women only park in Iran
And women only hotel in Riyadh
And women only bus service in Mexico City.
And women only cars in Tokyo
And MODESTY BUSES in Jerusalem
And women only taxis in Dublin
And women only PINK coaches in Mexico City
this list is to be continued...
With this we ask again:
How do you experience public environments that are exclusively male or female.
Do you see this as a strategy that 'tackles' the issue?
What would you propose to make public commuting safe?
(answer in any colour you like)
20 comments:
Apparently, people are against everything which would make a women comfortable..
I started a blog, depicting pictures everyday of Buses in Pune, where men commonly sit on Ladies Seat, and do not vacate it even after asking.. Not very encouraging comments I got..
http://theladiesseat.wordpress.com/
I feel its the Indian male attitude that is to be blamed.I feel stricter laws are the only solution.You cannot change the character of men in a day or week or month or years.Its got to do with their brought up.So parents needs to make sure that they inculcate values in their kids(boys) from childhood.
I think "women only" places are very nice in some situations, like in the Mumbai trains... when it is super packed I would much rather be crushed up against a bunch of women, anyday! It is just.. you know, more comfortable. I think they also have women's only subway cars in Tokyo for the same reason.
But in other cases, such as a "women only park" I see it as a stop-gap measure... if women can't enjoy a co-ed park because men are harassing them, a women's only park will solve that for the here and now, but will do nothing to change the attitudes of the men who will continue to harass women...
In terms of a "ladies seat" I see it in a similar way to a stop-gap measure. In the U.S. we do not have ladies seats, but when I am in the U.S. worrying about getting groped "bumped" into, or fondled is far from my mind on the bus, subway etc. In India I am always dying for a seat next to someone I know or another lady so I can avoid the possible for being touched.
linzi. i see what you're saying about being in super packed trains like mumbai...but isnt that more of an infrastructure issue; perhaps more trains that carry a count of how many people can fit into one compartment? and even if people are packed in together, one doesnt feel threatened by all men- its by certain kinds of male signals. maybe i wouldnt feel uncomfortable standing close to a man who didnt make eye contact- looked preoccupied or was simply another body in the crowd.
i've noticed that in some crowds, no matter how packed it is, people don't touch; they maintain that 1 mm of distance. they don't stare either, they don;t even look for that matter. this could be the london tube for instance. im not saying we in india need to behave in that manner- but just that the experience of being in a crowd can be threatening but needs to be addressed in a way outside of a situation based on segragation.
with the state chosing to make pink ladies special buses , it's making more dangerous divisions.
la la la, yes dividing women to protect them can certainly be dangerous! It then becomes the reason that "keeping women away from men (and therefore the public world in general) protects them" which makes people not focus on the real issue, the people who are PERPETRATING the acts, and instead makes the victims base their whole live on trying to protect themselves (burden on the victim, eh?)
While such ideas are greater in scope, my point about crowds is more thinking of practical day to day life. When I think of super packed trains, or when you have to slide over on a bus seat so you are touching strangers (I really would prefer NOT to touch any strangers, but that is not always a choice), I would much prefer to have my leg or arm brushing up against a sweaty aunty than a sweaty uncle any day. Maybe just because I don't have to worry about being misconstrued?
p.s. I really hate the color pink... since when did it become the 'women's color' anyways?
I think all these amenities being exclusive to women only worsen the problem, if women step out of these comfort zones, men leer and make cat calls at them. Men will feel threatened when women are bold enough to take the general amenities. They classify these women as being "too forward". There is no need to make such exclusive elements... men should learn to make way for women and accept it as normal
.@linzi : I hate pink too. and detest the fact that people consider it "women's colour".
I think all these amenities being exclusive to women only worsen the problem, if women step out of these comfort zones, men leer and make cat calls at them. Men will feel threatened when women are bold enough to take the general amenities. They classify these women as being "too forward". There is no need to make such exclusive elements... men should learn to make way for women and accept it as normal
.@linzi : I hate pink too. and detest the fact that people consider it "women's colour".
tell me of one place that doesnt experience street sexual harassment. now new news from vietnam.
http://blog.taragana.com/law/2009/10/30/vietnamese-jailed-for-pricking-womens-butts-15609/
Asked if this situation is uncomfortable, people will respond”yes”or "no”, according to the geographical space they live. Even though the evidence exists on such issues we need to grow further mentally, physically and spiritually to bring equality. This issues still exist because of the result of conditioning towards certain social and religious "rules" actually outweighing the physical and mental comfort
I feel that women's-only spaces are welcome and necessary until a time when things between men and women are more equal. Until a woman can feel comfortable in a bus with men around them, then we need to make certain changes to assure our safety. While women's-only spaces are certainly not the solution (educating both women and men is, in my opinion)they are a great coping-strategy and a way for women to enhance the sense of freedom they feel in their lives.
Adding to the list, Dubai has the following:
- Pink taxis, specifically for ladies and/or families..driver is also a lady in traditional dress.
- First six seats in buses reserved for ladies..men cannot sit there, if a lady is standing.Could be fined also, if an inspector sees.
-Ladies(and,families,I believe) day at Global Village during the Shopping Festival.
I feel it's great. But then, it's a matter of opinion..I see from the comments that some people do not appreciate it.The only time I do not appreciate it is in places like serpentine queues at cinema halls/elec bill paying outlets,etc- they should clearly demarcate a separate queue for ladies, instead of leaving it to the discretion of the guys at the counter.
in response to the first question in particular, and based on the experience of the 'general comaprtment', which during rush hour amounts to a male only space, i'd like to share this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/xaef/1029443004/
now whether female only spaces are also homoerotic in the same ways is not for me to answer, but i do recollect the experience of an extremely butch friend of mine being pushed out of the ladies compartment because the women took her to be a man. the key point there being that 'exclusive' spaces presume an intelligible and identifiable category of 'woman' or 'man' or 'hijra' or waht have you. but perhaps these are necessarily unstable categories taht we only presume a consensus on? a thought.
I hope this initiative will make women safe however, protection from the states, government and swift punishment on crime committed against women will help.
first of all these display items are not solution to taccle the issue.
first of all b4 thinking how to taccle the issue of eve teasing we should creat many awerness about eve teasing.
one example
a tamil writer in his comment about a film {unnai pool oruvan} he criticised a women reporter charector as awful bcause of that charactor is picturused as a smoking habbit person. {this is also can be add as eve teasing} the same writer use to speak of humanrights for all terroriest issues.he use to speak equalism in terreiest issues.
i dont know how come a women is excluded from human rights?
an partial over exagration criticisem comments on women for some commen error it also amounts in eve teasing. example if the smoker{the error commetor} is criticised in over exagrated maner because of her sex that is as she is a women. these issues cant be excluded from eve teasing.
when women go tribles in bykes, some news paper will over exugrate the issues and criticise the error on the motive wounding her sex.
partial criticisms, comments which are done by media and non media for a general error on a person or human being because of her women sex is also eve teasing.
{next thing is in our countery womens are granted with lots of buffets and open harresment aganist her free and peasful life.
women are openly facing many violent male domination against their democartic rights.}
so soft conner should be shown for women in these kind of isues when women engages. smoking, drinking etc.
un fare , partial teasing treatmen for women in common civil issues should also come under eve teasing.
many of them are not awer of these type of things.
women and their parents should be awer of un fare partial criticism on women .
first things in eve teasing and sexual harresment is women should have awerness about that she is an victum and her parents too should have awerness about that.
balmeing on women and her dress, modesity , for eve teasing and sex harresment is male dom crimenal escapesiem.
women in our conuntry specialy in states like tamilnadu are less awer of that women is victom in many issues.
women are not free to speak and question for thier sides.
the communication and expression of women are harresed by violent male dom threads.
these issues should be openly discussed.
It was the seperating of men and women that caused the problem in the first place. Men were told for thousands of years that women were just property to dispose of as they pleased. Men had complete control of every public space and women were not allowed. The men who do the Eve Teasing are trying to push women back into slavery because that is where they feel women belong.
Every pink bus or taxi is just another means of men to push women out of the real world and back into their fantasy of a woman locked in a cage obeying his every command.
When women allow themselves to be seperated out and treated like they have no right being in the real world, they just play right into men's evil plan to resume subjagation of women.
I still fail to understand: why this differentiation between man & woman.
I clicked on the flickr link provided above and read the poem;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/xaef/1029443004/
Wow. This is the first time I thought about men groping OTHER MEN on the public transportation systems of India. Do the men enjoy being touched by other men on the trains or do they hate it as much as we (women) do, but they have remained silent about it due to embarrassement?
Perhaps this is the only way that repressed, unmarried adult men with no sexual outlet can get sexually stimulated by another human being?
Any answers?
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