Words by Rume Otuguor
Happy WomenÔÇÖs History Month! This month encourages a lot of reflection on the strides women have made, in the UK and across the globe. For example, women were at the forefront of the innovation and roll-out of the Covid-19 vaccine. However, it would be remiss to assume that the work here is done, that the gender row is over and everyone can go home to their newly safe and equal homes. This past year alone has thrown up new disputes for women globally, revived those previously settled and intensified ones that have stood the test of time. Below, we take a look back at a few of the events that threatened the safety of our sisters in the past year, and appreciate their fighting spirit that can never be squandered.
Roe v Wade
Roe v Wade was a court case in 1973 that set a new lawful precedent, meaning that women in the United States of America were allowed the right to terminate (abort) a pregnancy up to 24 weeks after conception. However, with the re-emergence of powerful right wing groups and the conservative majority in the Supreme court, prompted by Trump, this decision was overturned on the 24th June 2022. In the original draft of the policy, it stated: ÔÇ£it is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the peopleÔÇÖs elected representatives.ÔÇØ This left it up to the states themselves to decide the future of womenÔÇÖs reproductive rights. With that said, where are we now in 2023?
Currently, thirteen states have banned abortion with varying restrictions and another twelve are attempting to do so. In the other parts of the country, abortion remains legal, and in some states new protections have been added, like in Michigan. In recent news, Wyoming have banned any and every drug that could be used to attain an abortion and Texas are in talks to follow suit. The move towards the criminalisation of abortion in the US contrasts from other countries such as Ireland, Mexico and India where abortion, to varying degrees, is becoming more accessible.
Mahsa Amini
Mahsa Amini was a young Iranian woman of 22 years old who died in hospital on September 16th after being arrested on the streets of Tehran for not wearing her hijab (headscarf), in line with the conservative Islamic codes of dress. Although Iranian security forces maintain that her death was caused by a heart attack, her family dispute this, stating that she was abused in the police car on the way to a detention centre. Eye-witness accounts attest to this alongside reports which revealed her cause of death to be a skull fracture, triggered by ÔÇÿheavy blows to the headÔÇÖ.
Since her funeral on the 17th, there have been widespread protests in IranÔÇÖs cities where women have burned their hijabs and/or cut their hair, both in public and on social media, to show their unwavering support for Amini and their anger towards IranÔÇÖs oppressive laws. Men also joined the protests, chanting: ÔÇÿwomen, life, freedom,ÔÇÖ shoulder-to-shoulder with their sisters, wives and daughters. In Iran such dissent is a case of life or death; as of January 2023, 522 people have reportedly been killed and more than 20,000 detained, not accounting for the instances that go unreported. In spite of this, the demonstrations are ongoing. They have been described by various outlets as one of the biggest oppositions to IranÔÇÖs theocracy since the revolution in 1979 ÔÇô one that shows no signs of slowing down.
Child Q
Last June, the contemptible case of Child Q came to light. In December 2020, this 15-year-old black schoolgirl was stripped searched by female police officers under the suspicion that she was in possession of cannabis. Although the teachers who initially rooted through her belongings found nothing, the situation was unjustly escalated to the point where Child Q was forced to remove her sanitary towel, spread her buttocks and cough. Again, no drugs were found but this young black girl was left violated, bare and traumatised.
The report conducted by the City and Hackney Safeguarding Children Partnership (CHSCP) into the event, revealed that racism ÔÇÿwas likely to have been an influencing factor.ÔÇÖ In the last year alone twenty-five children were stripped searched in Hackney-based schools of whom only two were white. More recently last month, a black schoolgirl in Surrey was attacked on school grounds by a gang of white girls, whilst surrounding adults watched and stoked the violence. This ÔÇÿracially aggravated assaultÔÇÖ is another instance in a string of violent acts perpetrated against young black girls in UK society. Communities have had enough and continue to take action in the form of lobbying and protest.
Women and Girls under Taliban Rule
Since the Taliban regained control in August 2021, womenÔÇÖs rights have been systematically eroded. ┬áCurrently women are barred from political participation, girls cannot go to school past sixth grade and work opportunities for women are severely restricted. At first, the Taliban allowed women to continue studying for university degrees albeit under stringent, gender-segregated conditions such as only being allowed to be taught by men and being denied access to specific STEM subjects. However, that is no longer the case as university education is now prohibited under the recent ÔÇÿindefinite banÔÇÖ, for reasons that are baseless. With no secondary school and no further education, the future of girls and women in Afghanistan is a precarious one.
Nonetheless, small classes take place in the home and some schools still run in provinces, funded by charities ÔÇô a risky act of defiance to access what should be a fundamental right. More recently, a group of young Afghan women congregated outside Kabul University to protest the ban, by sitting on the ground and reading their books whilst their male counterparts prepared for the upcoming academic year. It remains to be seen whether this is indeed a ÔÇÿpostponementÔÇÖ as the Taliban proclaim, but until then, the opposition to these draconian measures continue.