Sunday, 22 December 2024
Sunday, 22 December 2024
Windy Chicago felt the storm in Calcutta as students held candles and placards to register their grief, shock and outrage.
Kheyal, the Bengali cultural club at the University of Chicago, took out a protest march on campus Saturday over the rape and murder of the young doctor at Calcutta’s RG Kar Medical College & Hospital.
Public protests over the RG Kar horror have spread among the Bengali diaspora across the globe, from New York to London, Heidelberg to Scotland.
And in the protests there are common themes of outrage.
“Even in the 21st century, some rape-victims are shamed and in some cases they themselves have to bear the responsibility of these atrocities,” Kheyal said in its statement.
“In fact, some people put the blame on women's choice of clothing for such incidents of violence. Such allegations and misogynistic remarks deeply upset us. Such medieval views must not be condoned, and proper sensitization is the need of the hour.”
The statement had suggestions for school curricula as well.
“We feel, in order to fight rape and gender-based violence, the congenital patriarchal outlook should be abandoned. And in that regard, an appropriate ‘Sex and Gender sensitization’ curriculum should be introduced in school. The root of rape, misogyny, homophobia and transphobia lies in the patriarchal framework of the society that has been instilled in us from our early ages. And due to the lack of such sensitization, such monstrous crimes still take place daily across the globe.
“Hence, we demand not only a proper trial of the perpetrators, but also a proper scrutiny of our current social architecture. Lastly, we want to be ensured by the concerned administration that justice is served,” the statement said.
