By Amy Rudolph
Elm Staff Writer
In the most recent election, the battle between progressive thinking and traditionalist rhetoric is the most contentious it has been in years. While some people many think of this as just an American problem, other countries face this as well.
In America, we have a constitution that allows us to criticize our government freely, but not everyone in the world experiences this luxury. In Russia, many citizens fear what will happen to them if they air their grievances. I mention Russia because it is one of the more industrialized and developed countries compared to America. Russia’s similarities breed the same problems that we deal with domestically, but on a much grander scale because of their limited freedom of expression.
In recent months following the election, many in America feel as though we are moving backward as a country and more rights to marginalized groups are being taken away. This has not proven to be the case just yet, unless you are an immigrant or refugee affected by President Trump’s travel ban executive order.
Last month, the Russian parliament passed a bill to decriminalize wife beating. The bill passed in response to a promise made to “return Russia to its traditional values,” according to the Economist. The traditional values that this refers to reinforce hundreds of years of a crude practice that ensured women stayed in a submissive role in the household, being constantly reminded that at least in some way, they were less than their husband.
Though some may argue that getting rid of this statute does not promote violence by itself, it does, in the very least, legitimize it. By allowing it to happen and ignoring the fact that women and children are more vulnerable to attack, Russia opens the door for even more cases of violence until no one reports it anymore. If no one is willing fight for these victims, they won’t ever report attacks and all of the abuse will further isolate women from the outside community.
According to the Economist, “many Russians now embrace the liberal notion of individual rights,” but that does not account for how many of those in power still believe that women do not have to right to live without fear of being assaulted, even in their own home by someone they love. As America is swept into its new reality as a possibly traditionalist future, the talk of rights, especially women’s rights, is ever present. The Women’s Marches around the country told American politicians and the rest of the world that the fight to protect women’s rights would be nasty.
But then, as the media shifted toward other stories, however, the power of the movement diminished, even if those in the movement don’t believe so.
When the media stops showing the world what is being fought for and its importance, everyone begins to forget. But if the media never even shows what is going on, no one will ever know the fight even exists. Protestors in Moscow have been calling for politicians to reinstate the wife beating ban. But aside from the two articles in the Economist and one from the Guardian, the English-speaking media hasn’t bothered to notice. This lack of representation further silences the already vulnerable women and does not validate their fight.
Feminists around the world may be looking at America and wondering how to fix the cultural ideas that women do not deserve the same rights as a man. While this a good fight, the time, resources, and attention may better serve women in Russia who are already living in a world that American women fear they may soon experience.
Being able to truly call yourself a feminist means supporting women no matter where they are and ensuring that they are equal to the men around them. Some may be shocked to hear about Russian women having to face this issue in 2017 as they are a developed, industrialized society, but it just proves that women’s rights can be taken away everywhere. There is so much work to be done to provide all women with a sense of security and equality.