Its All Her Fault
There is a sudden enthusiasm for dress codes in Indian universities. First it was Mumbai University, then it was Delhi and now its Anna University. And mind you, this dress code only applies to women. The logic goes something like this–women are getting harassed, they are getting raped and molested because men are tempted, and they are tempted by mini-skirts and spaghetti straps.
I have news for these, mostly, middle aged men who are so keen to protect female students–YOU CAN BE COVERED HEAD TO TOE AND STILL BE HARASSED. Did these people bother to actually speak with women before they came up with this brilliant idea? I don’t think so. Understandably the students have been up in arms about this “blame the victim” measure. It doesn’t take a sociologist to figure out that sexual harassment is about gender discrimination, and the exercise of patriarchal power. Com’on you Phd-ed knuckle-heads.
Update: There is a petition on the web you can read and sign.
September 9th, 2005 at 2:21 pm
Like I said recently in my journal, the male students can carry out a ‘kachcha-baniyan parade’ to celebrate and tell the VCs how bloodt right they are….as if men never dress indecently!
Discrimination, I think is about excercising power, matriarchal or patriarchal, doesn’t really matter…..
September 9th, 2005 at 2:49 pm
brought here by sepia mutiny.
love the colors.
love it, love it, love it!
and now i will read something here …..
September 12th, 2005 at 2:05 pm
[...] university politics. Shaswati’s Blog and Sepia Mutiny discuss the move to introduce dress codes for women students. Neha Viswanathan « Banglad [...]
September 13th, 2005 at 5:23 am
My understanding is that the new dress code (imposed by Anna University) stipulates rules for women and men. The guys need to wear only formals. they can’t come in t-shirts and jeans.
September 24th, 2005 at 10:44 am
Please visit the link above
September 24th, 2005 at 10:45 am
Sorry folks here is the link
http://risingstorm.blogspot.com/2005/09/run-fast-neo-talibs-are-coming.html
November 2nd, 2005 at 5:19 am
Actually the incidents of rapes etc are ocurring due to some other resaons but not due to the dress code. Lets take a person who has criminal thoughts in his brain, he would commit a rape even if the girl is wearing a chudidar or else jeans. Its not bout the dress its all about the mind status.
November 2nd, 2005 at 5:22 am
People who are chauvinists generally are involved in eveteasing or in some other unfortunate incidents. So its about the thought procedure ,which should change in India if women are to take a stand in the society.
December 19th, 2005 at 9:48 am
dress code, prohibition of mobiles and other regulations are some kind of nazi activites.
there is lot of similar nonsense in ANNA UNIVERSITY.
a) The authorities ban vechicles inside the campus because of pollution (noise, air and so on)
there exemption for Staff vechicles and those make a visit to tennis court and etc, because they run on H2O and hence no pollution
b) there exists a playground, where no one allowed to walk! and will be penalised for playing games.
c) exams are another funny things. One of my classmate used to score like this 8+42, 5+45 and so on. internal+external >= 50 to pass. if he score less in internal since that subject is tough game and he is poor on that subject, he will score more in external exams, which is impossible because externals are tougher than internal exams. then how is that possible???
d) One of our lecturer used to give syllabus and which book covers that and end of the session he declared as the syllabus was over.
e) Very old and poor syllabus for lot of papers.
f) for this semester we got three Ph.Ds for a single lab (No work and Full pay) and no more doctors for any other paper( where we need a good professor) Also we got a non-post graduate for a paper.
g) In one of my semester I had a programming language lab. they taught C, without pointers, structures and other important aspects like embedded C. Then what is the use of that lab???
h) Lot of corruption in purchasing For example one of equipment purchased in electrical lab(DC and AC drive trainer module in cica’94) was never installed.
instead of his moral policing! He should concentrate on academic issues like improving syllabus, providing better education and so on.
He can also think of reducing fees so that lot of less privileged people will get better education
December 20th, 2005 at 2:37 pm
two things must be done immediately
1. collect dress code rules from as many colleges all over india as possible and get in touch with us at blanknoise@gmail.com .
2. collect all types of clothes worn by various poeple/ participants who have experienced street sexual harassment / eve teased/ raped. we must be able to put this collective together and ask again…who is asking for what//?!! what is asking for it?!
May 5th, 2008 at 7:13 am
It is good to implement dress code system for students when visiting the religious temples. This is because the some girls are coming to the temples with extremely seducing western outfits like tight jeans and mini tops. These outfits are provoking men to commit crimes and rapes. This is quite against Hindu tradition and customs. These explicit outfits are making them to loose respect and security in the society.
What if the all Hindu goddesses throw off their Sarees and wear explicit outfits? Absolutely they loose respect. Indian girls are ruining the Indian tradition and culture utterly. It is strange that the tomboyish girls are protesting against the dress code implementation at temples and colleges. They are forgetting that they are females! Fancy that they say “we are very comfortable with the western outfits!” If they are given complete freedom, they would go to temples in complete nude.
The fact is that women are quickly tempted to any social change, even much faster than men. It is so strange that when men are wearing same pants and shirts since the ages together, women have now started wearing tomboyish clothes, leaving Punjabi and dignified Sarees behind. These barbaric behaviors of the tomboyish girls lead to the birth of dress code implementation in colleges, schools and in temples. A society devoid of traditions and customs is damned forever; and a society in which women do not follow any tradition and culture, will be ruined.
Women have the power to build or destroy a family, a society or a country. They should remember that purity /holiness refers not only to the heart, but to every attitude. Indian Women should preserve their purity and nobility so that they are respected and adored as goddesses. They have misconception that the men are treating them inferior. Nowadays women are given more than 35% of reservation in employments, holding 100% equal economic rights, holding good political portfolios, protected by many judicial laws etc. What else they want still now?
September 20th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
Goodness, I can not believe the guys are just trying to get off by saying, she tempted me. It really is all about their state of mind. People just need to accept that some people have it on their mind and some don’t. The normals don’t and that is what makes them normal.
November 5th, 2008 at 9:40 am
There is no mysogeny in my argument. In Hindu tradition, girls are embodiments of a family’s honour and pride. Women have the power to build up or ruin a society. Generally women are respected in their traditional attires. They loose respect if they wear low hip jeans, tight jeans, mini tops etc, as their anatomy can be visualized by men easily. It is the not the fault of the provoked, but it is the fault of the one who provokes. It is a natural phenomenon that Men are attracted to women’s beauty, Women are attracted to Men’s guts and wits. Remember that women are being measured in terms of beauty since ancient times. Fashion should not exceed beyond the limits of one’s tradition. As long as women preserve the traditions, a nation or society will not be ruined. Self-confidence and guts do not depend on the attire you wear, it depends on the type of the mind you have. If is a fact that respect also depends on the attire you wear. For example, I respect women who wear traditional attires, and I abuse who wear tomboyish attires. Once I have seen a tomboy wearing low hip jeans, such that her underwear is seen. No real man would respect a tomboy. I think Saraswathi is a name of educational goddess. Its good to have such name. Bearing that name, It is strange that you are protesting against the dress code!
November 14th, 2008 at 7:29 am
Leaving the above comment as an illustration of the idiocy of someone who admits they abuse women for wearing pants, and says my name wrong.
December 19th, 2008 at 6:18 am
@ Rameshraju : Could you please tell me where were you when they were handing out the brains?
@ Shashwati : A brilliant effort. I was living under the rock for a while because of which I found this so late. Shashwati, this is another way to prove to impose it to the women of our country that we are still living in a male dominated society. But I was surprised as to why was there not a word of protests from the students!