Submitted by Jaclyn Janes on the 2017 winter session program in India sponsored by the Department of English…
As a class, we recently attended the annual Jaipur Literature Festival, which is the largest festival of its kind in the world, and also happens to be free! It is an amazing academic forum for informed discussions and literary presentations. The very first panel we attended was called Manelists, Misogyny, and Mansplaining. This brought to attention many of the women’s issues we have been discussing in class and observing throughout India. First, they encouraged women to take up more space physically and socially because public spaces occupied by women are safer for all women. They also talked about the domestic violence epidemic in India and globally and were quick to correct a “manelist” who said that domestic violence is not a gender issue. But the talking point that struck me the most, because it kept coming up and being repeated, is that India is paying very close attention to American politics and how we treat our women. They are hyper-aware of the fact that American attitudes and policies infiltrate and influence every corner of the world, and so they keep themselves informed and discuss U.S. politics as if they are their own. I think this is a huge deal because this same week we saw the Women’s Marches across America, and I think female activism of this kind takes on a whole new importance when we realize that when we march in America, it doesn’t just affect American women. The attitudes and policies we demand here, have tangible consequences all over the world. I’ll never forget what I’ve learned at these panel discussions, about the specific issues facing Indian women in their context, but also about how connected we all are in our struggles.