Where are we marching exactly ?

Gang rape has woken up the entire nation. The good news is that many of us are talking about ‘better law, better policing and speedy judiciary.

But we want to raise an equally pertinent issue.

How many of us make our children FIGHTERs? How will someone get so much courage to do such brutal act? Isn’t it when they see the others as weak? Are we in some ways encouraging our children to become weak?

Maybe we ourselves justify many small brutal acts at our homes and schools? Slapping or beating a child is taken as a PARENTING RIGHT. 

How many of us SILENTLY see our kids being punished in schools? Some of us even encourage the teachers to ‘fix’ the child.
How many of us ignore the THREATS to our children? Moreover, how many of us give threats to children - making them live out of fear?

Kids grow with such a big FEAR of law and order that even if the law and order is in place, our kids would never like to enter a police station. Forget about asking for justice.

How many of us allow our children to express “mom/ teacher/guru - you are wrong?”

I was part of one dance performance and kids were scolded, insulted, and threatened …. just so that everybody practices and create a nice dance performance. It was established, “In fine arts the student has to listen to the guru. Children need to learn discipline”.

One wonders what were the children learning - to be disciplined or to be timid in front of authority. 

Why only talk about the teachers, one of the parent told the dance teacher “if required beat her up but ensure she learns how to dance”.

How many of us speak against this? How many of us EMPOWER our child to EXPRESS, THINK and TALK about SELF?

Today children are growing in constant fear of some authority who can be many a times irrational and mostly non-empathetic in their demands / threats. How does one expect a child to think about law and order in such an environment?

• Study well, else you will become beggar.
• Come in time to class, else you will get a red mark
• Sit quietly else you have to go out of the class.
• Drink milk else you will not get chocolate
• Finish your homework, else you cannot watch TV

Ah!!!! I am suffocated
I am concerned
I am agitated

I am agitated because the whole nation is talking ONLY about law. As if setting that right will set everything right.

I am concerned that no one is talking about self – we are getting more scared “what if this happens with my child?” I am putting more “CHECKS” on our child rather than making the child EMPOWERED to be able to speak against any injustice, including at home.
I am suffocated. We are using our authority to CLOSE children’s mind and preparing them to NOT TO RAISE their voice anytime in future.

Bullies bully more because no one speaks against them, we are SCARED of them – we are scared of teachers, schools and all kinds of authorities.

Today, ask your child

• How do you feel when you or your friends are scolded in the class?
• What all you can do if someone is threatening you, including your parent and teachers?
• Ask your child “what is your opinion about the police?’
• Make law and order at home “make codes which are followed by ALL and the defaulters are answerable”.
• Share this gang rape incident with your child and listen to their views – encourage them to talk about when they think they have been brutally treated by teachers, parents and other children?
• How can they speak about this?

Let us bring Law and order inside our HOMES and SCHOOLS. Let us RESPECT our children at home and schools. Let us shake ourselves on our own brutal acts or comparing, threatening and disrespecting our own children.

Once children are living in an environment free of fear and authority - then it would make sense to prepare them to deal with dangers that living in a heterogeneous society inevitably puts up. To us empowerment is more about the environment we offer. Once clear thought and assertive action is thriving in children in such an environment preparing them to deal with the demons of the society should be relatively easy.
More about preparing children in sequel to this article.

Aditi
(Team amable)

Genie kids

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