I'm a Brahmin-woman fighting patriarchy. Twitter-CEO Jack has disappointed me
As the headline of this story may have told you, I am a Brahmin woman. I have had my share of patriarchal experiences in this world, and the Twitterverse. But nothing in the recent days upset me more than Twitter's CEO tone-deaf photo calling for smashing Brahminical patriarchy. Before you jump to his defense, know that I hate patriarchy but can't support Jack either, because nothing hurts anyone more than selective outrage.
First, let's start with the definition. What is patriarchy?
Dictionary.com defines patriarchy as 'a social system in which power is held by men, through cultural norms and customs that favor men and withhold opportunity from women'. Look around and you'll see plenty of examples. From the father deciding whom the daughter should marry to male CEO writing laws of workplace sexual harassment, patriarchy is basically everywhere. You can't deny it, just fight it.
Jack and his visit to India
This month, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey decided to tick one item off his bucket list and paid a visit to India. He met Congress President Rahul Gandhi, spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, knocked on Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's door and spent quality time with music maestro AR Rahman. He also met many female journalists and activists in Delhi to understand their concerns.
Jack met women to understand concerns, ended up miffing many
So far so good? The private meeting was meant to understand how Twitter can be made a safer place for women. Most of the attendees spoke about abusive trolls and sought action against it. At the end of the meeting, a Dalit activist gifted Jack a poster which read 'Smash Brahminical Patriarchy'. Jack and others posed with the poster, and the image got criticism.
As photo went viral, Twitter issued statement
As soon as the photo became viral, Jack was slammed and accused of singling out one community. In damage control mode, Twitter immediately released a statement saying, "It is not a statement from Twitter or our CEO, but a tangible reflection of our company's efforts to see, hear and understand all sides of important public conversations." Classic law-firm framed statement.
Those who attended meeting say no one forced Jack
Journalist Rituparna Chatterjee, who attended the meeting, said at no point was Jack or Twitter asked to share the poster or pose with it. Their acknowledgment was their choice, she said. Another attendee journalist Barkha Dutt also tweeted, "From everything I know now she never asked @jack to pose with it." Now, it's safe to assume Jack posed because he wanted to.
Here's the problem: Jack should have known better
The attendees claim Jack's decision to pose wasn't influenced. Even if I give him benefit of doubt and assume he didn't know how caste works in India, I am forced to wonder: As the Twitter CEO should he not have known better? But if Jack knew and yet chose to single out one community, I have another question: Do you know what patriarchy is?
Patriarchy is patriarchy, as simple as that
Like pointed out earlier, my life hasn't been sans fighting patriarchy. From home to college to office, I have been reminded I am a woman and there are things I am supposed to just accept. But I have fought and still, am battling it- Patriarchy, not Brahminical, neither Islamist nor Christian. Just patriarchy, which is deeply imbibed in the whole wide world.
Let me translate it in a language 'intellectuals' understand
Because 'intellectuals' will jump to diss me, I decided to tread the longer path. So, when I say terrorism, I don't imply Muslim terrorism or Jew terrorism. When has inflicting terror been an act of religion? Never. Similarly, patriarchy has nothing to do with castes but everything to do with men who are full of themselves and can't see women getting empowered. Get it?
Let this be said: I am not undermining anyone's struggles
Since jumping the gun is how we function these days, I think it is important to state this: I am not negating the struggles of Dalit sisters, or lower caste women. Coming from a position of privilege, I can't remotely understand what they go through. But compartmentalizing patriarchy on the basis of caste, demonizing one community and showing selective outrage is equally wrong.
Coming back to Jack. Leave the tone-deaf attitude. Will you?
Twitter has given voice to millions, and Jack deserves credit for all of it. But rather than attacking one community, how about you make the platform safer for women, Jack? No one likes to see abuses every morning, and if you can't control them, your photo-ops with women mean nothing. We fight enough battles in real life, make the virtual one better. Please?
