An Instagram challenge called @36daysoftype is doing the rounds of the internet lately. It is an yearly open call inviting designers, illustrators and visual artists to share their view on the letters and numbers from our alphabet.
An Indian illustrator by the name of Kruttika Susarla has done what no one envisioned- she came up with a feminist version of the alphabets and the illustrations are nothing short of inspiring!
Her illustrations are to the point and the reasons that she gives for these illustrations are extremely witty:
“(We need these illustrations) Because it’s 2017 and a certain orange man somewhere thinks it’s okay to dictate what women should or should not do with their bodies.”
“Because it’s 2017 and marital rape is still not a criminal offence in India.”
“Because it’s 2017 and feminism is not a marketing tool to sell your new nude-shade lipstick.”
The illustrations depict everything that society needs to know about feminism today. Right from constant consent to lesser discussed topic like androgyny, she sheds some much needed light on the delicate issues with blatant words that will make you think.
Why do women still need to ‘fight’ for everything? It’s 2017 and we’re still struggling to prove that feminists aren’t feminazis. We’re still struggling for equal wages. We’re still struggling to make ‘Marital rape’ a punishable offence. Why?
Check out the groundbreaking art here:
A for Androgyny | Androgyny is a behaviour/characteristic that includes aspects of masculinity and femininity. While this is more of a recent phenomenon in fashion and pop culture, it was not uncommon in India for men to wear jewellery or for women to wear the nine yard saree like a men’s dhoti.
@36daysoftype begins today and here’s the first one from a series of 36 Days of Feminist type where I’m going to try and encompass various things that the word stands for. Because it’s 2017 and apparently ‘feminazi’ is still a thing.
B for Bodily integrity | Bodily integrity is a concept that recognises the right for every human being to have autonomy over their own bodies—any physical intrusion against a person’s will is considered a violation of basic human rights in most countries.
Day 2 from 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and a certain orange man somewhere thinks it’s okay to dictate what women should or should not do with their bodies.
C for continuous consent | Consent is a physical, emotional and mutual agreement that happens in a safe, positive mental space without manipulation and violence. Consent should be continuous irrespective of your relationship status. Even if you’ve said yes once, you can change your mind, stop whenever you want and just because you said once does not mean it’s a yes ‘always’.
Letter C for 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and marital rape is still not a criminal offence in India.
D for Dalit Womanist Paradigm | Dalit Womanism was a term coined by Cynthia Stephen(intellectual and activist) in 2009 as a statement against the de-politicisation of mainstream Indian feminism that excluded experiences and realities of the Dalit community—which meant mainstream feminism = patriarchy.
D for 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and as we enter the fourth wave of feminism in India, it really needs to become inclusive.
E for Emancipation | Emancipation is the idea of fighting for and gaining social and political rights for oppressed communities. In her book, ‘Recovering Subversion’, Nivedita Menon(activist and Poltical Science professor at JNU), talks of emancipation as more of a constant process than an end goal.
E for 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and to resist is the only way forward.
F for Feminisms | The usage of ‘feminisms’ is very recent in the history of feminist discourse—largely because of differences in opinion (amongst feminists) of how patriarchal structures affect/operate in specific social and political contexts. The common ground/aim however is to achieve a state where gender is seen as malleable instead of a rigid social construct–often used to oppress individuals/communities that do not adhere to it.
F for 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and we should be open to dialogue and challenge our norms
G for Gender Performativity | A concept that recognises gender as an elaborate act or performance instead of binary male or female. This was first introduced by Judith Butler(American philosopher) in 1990. Drag is probably one such example that defies gender as a construct.
G for 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and it’s time to put an end to gender based violence and oppression.
H for History | Feminist history should not be confused with history of feminism (of the movement). This is an important aspect of feminist theory that demands for a critical re-look at history from a cultural and social angle through a feminist lens. The danger of a single narrative is always that it is written by and for the people in power and hence eliminates the realities of minorities. (Alternative facts, anyone?). Feminist history does not merely seek to represent women but also to analyse their influence in shaping what is ‘public history’. H for 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and our textbooks could use some serious feminist upgrade.
I for Intersectionality | Intersectionality is a very relevant trait of feminism, (especially for India)—where one cannot think of fighting for equal rights without understanding that there is a prevalent overlap of social identities like caste, class(economic and social), gender, ethnicity, religion and disability. A discourse that does not take these into consideration is simply not a feminist one.
I for 36 days of Feminist type for this year’s edition of @36daysoftype. Because it’s 2017 and feminism is not a marketing tool to sell your new nude-shade lipstick.
It’s 2017 and it’s high time you embrace feminism.
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