Coping With Harassment in the 21st Century

Harassment whether it may be physical or emotional, has been taken too far specially in India.

It is a MYTH that Women who are sexually harassed generally provoke harassment by the way they look, dress and behave. The FACT: Harassment does not occur because women dress provocatively or initiate sexual activity in the hope of getting promoted and advancing their careers. The only thing they have in common is that over 99% of them are female.

It is a MYTH: If you ignore harassment, or act like it's not happening, it will go away. But the FACT: It will not. The more you ignore an act of harassment, the more the harassers are encouraged. So it's safe to say if you ignore, you might as well label yourself as a catalyst to this hideous act.

Psychological abuse can be taking place in your workplace, in intimate relationships and even within family. For the victims of sexual harassment, negative psychological and emotional effects often occur. The most common are as follows:

1. Psychological stress and loss of motivation
2. Being humiliated by constant scrutiny and gossip
3. Loss of trust in the types of people that occupy similar positions as the harasser or his/her colleagues, loss of trust in the work environment
4. Depression, anxiety or even panic attacks
5. Sleeplessness/nightmares, difficulty concentrating, headaches, fatigue
6. Eating disorders, alcoholism, and feeling powerless or out of control

Recognition of abuse is the first step to prevention.

It is often difficult for abuse victims to acknowledge their situation and to seek help. Many abusers are able to control their victims in a manipulative manner, utilizing methods to persuade others to conform to the wishes of the abuser, rather than to force them to do something they do not wish to do. Because aggression in abusive relationships can be carried out subtly and covertly through various manipulation and control tactics, victims often don't perceive the true nature of the relationship until conditions worsen considerably.

Religious Influence

It is argued that fundamentalist views of religions, which have developed in male-dominated cultures, tend to reinforce emotional abuse. Researcher state that Gender inequity is usually translated into a power imbalance with women being more vulnerable. This vulnerability is more precarious in traditional patriarchal societies. Christianity, Islam, and even Buddhism are religions in which women are perceived to be treated as inferior to men.

Human being have come a long way since we were first barbarians.

But with the evolution of man, most of the rules then created have not evolved. This is creating a difficult scenario for us today. The society, how they perceive us women, needs to change, otherwise we'll be stranded in the middle of an advanced society and a backward mindset, for a long time.

Image source: wikipedia