Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya
A friend of mine took me to task last week for the last two columns I had written.
The columns were in support of new Tanzanian President John Magufuli’s style of leadership and excused his faux pas pertaining to his banning miniskirts in his country on the basis that they somehow cause an increase in the spread of HIV.
The second related to the uThukela Municipality that used virginity as criterion for qualifying for a council bursary scheme.
The Tanzanian department of foreign affairs has since denied that such a ban was ever announced. The municipality has also made a u-turn and decided to think their plan through a little more carefully. But that was not her point.
My friend’s complaint was that in both instances I had failed to recognise the anti-women sexism inherent. She thought that by excusing Magufuli because he is a disciplined and efficient technocrat, and justifying the municipality’s good intentions, I had congratulated them for infringing on the rights of women and children.
I think she has a valid point.
I certainly would not have praised or justified an effective politician or well-meaning government that thought that black people’s rights are worth riding roughshod over. In fact, many of those who seek to justify apartheid tend to point to the apparent “law and order” during the error, but not the draconian measures used to maintain this order.
It must, therefore, be equally unacceptable to accommodate discrimination based on sex as I would if it were based on skin colour, even if the one discriminating and infringing on the rights of women and girls claimed noble intentions.
In the cauldron of the struggle against racism and bad governance, women’s rights have continued to take the back seat. It is as if the misogyny and sexism we witness every day will automatically be taken care of if we practise good governance.
The development of the theory of intersectionality, with regards to sexism against women has taught us that it is not linear.
It is part of an ecosystem that touches on all other areas of a woman’s life such as their class, where they happen to be born, sexual orientation, life opportunities and so on.
To tackle one and not the other is to kick the proverbial can down the road. Besides, South Africans have long understood and have long come to the appreciation that freedom is indivisible. We have long appreciated that freedom for some is freedom for none.
South Africans must change tack and stop the general tendency to relegate anti-sexism to a minor struggle or an issue for those who choose to label themselves feminists. Anti-sexism must become mainstream.
We have seen #FeesMustFall, #ZumaMustFall, #RhodesMust Fall marches and activism; we have seen South Africans take to the streets in protest against levels of unemployment, against racism.
We have seen campaigns to save the rhino, and banners and hashtags on almost every item imaginable, but I cannot recall a campaign to exorcise the demon of anti-women sexism from our society.
Anti-women and anti-girl practices occur all around us. They happen in cultural practices such as when young girls are abducted in the name of ukuthwala; in religious organisations too.
I have never heard of the charlatan pastors who indecently touch women’s private parts – claiming to bestow heavenly blessings on these body parts – doing the same for male congregants.
Sometimes the sexism wears a friendly face, even though it is still unwelcome.
It is common practice in South Africa to arbitrarily link professional women’s abilities to their looks. It is common to read about the “petite but powerful” businesswoman or politician, or the “youthful mother of two”, when neither age nor parenting are at issue.
Women who partake in what are traditionally male-dominated sporting events such as football and rugby must necessarily have to explain their own sexuality as if there is a right or wrong answer to the question.
Even when sexism is at face value against men, such as when they are depicted as bumbling fools in the home, this is most often about how men are not able to perform “women’s duties”, such as being unable to take care of children or find their way in the kitchen or the home.
In that way, it perpetuates the idea that it is women who should be working around the home, while men watch sport and drink beer.
Fighting against sexism and for the fair treatment of women and girls is no less a human right as fighting against the unfair discrimination against homosexuals, people with albinism or any of the obviously outdated basis of discrimination.
It is about creating a society where all of us feel we have a fair and equal chance of living fulfilled lives our talents and efforts allow us. It is for that reason that I am sorry for being flippant with regards to the sexism against women and girls.
I am looking forward to #SexismMustFall, and an attitude in our everyday lives that take us to the hashtag being true.