Equal For Equal: Advocacy For Gender Equality

By Thelma Kalu & Uko Calistus 

On Sunday 8th, March 2020 while the world celebrated the International Women’s Day, the Model Theatre Studio, University of Uyo was filled to the brim as numbers trooped in with the expectation to feed their eyes on A Stage Play entitled EQUAL FOR EQUAL.

 The play was specifically crafted in commemoration of the women’s day celebration. As all were seated the cotton open on the casts and the play commenced in earnest to unveil the trouble in Ufa Obio as the women took their demands up against the men to grant them equal rights in the affairs of the community.

 According to the play; Eunice Udo who played the lead character known as WOMAN LEADER spearheaded the struggle of Ufa Obio women community, to obtain equality from their male counterparts after she returned from school in the white man’s land.

 The play that was written by Godwin Tom has all the mechanics of good theatrical perfection and its scenes unveiled in a sequence of aesthetics.

In the play the women of Ufa Obio demanded for equality in all ramifications and these demands met with the resistance of the King and Counselors of Ufa Obio. At this juncture all hell gotloose as the women vowed never to accept the continuous subjugation of their gender; they embarked on a STRIKE as a practical measure to show the men that they’re very serious about their demands.

After the Woman Leader had declared the commencement of the STRIKE every woman of Ufa Obio abandoned their domestic duties at their various homes, an abomination stroke the community as men were now the ones that cook, fetch water, fetch firewood, go to the market and even sit babies.

 Ufa Obio was thrown into big commotion and the men were beginning to feel the heat adversely as their wives even denied them right of sex.

Obviously the men of Ufa Obio were thrown out of balance by the women as all actions and decisions of the King to tame the women proofed abortive.

 For the men in the play a great calamity had befallen the community and the gods seem to be sleeping while women went on agitation for equally.

However, the playwright made good use of transitive technique to transmute serious scenes to express lighter feelings. The introduction of the character of Umakiso, who was a drunkard, was a technique to absorb tension created by serious tragic scenes.

One other thing I noticed about the beauty of the play was that its casts where so known to its characters that they performed with so much passion and zeal that even made me to forget that I was seated at the Model Theatre Studio because in various occasions while the staging was ongoing I had seen myself in Ufa Obio where the struggle for gender equality ensured.

However, after every fights and resolutions at the end women were granted their demand for equality as the men and King of Ufa Obio could no longer hold the fire that rage wild.

 However, before I proceed to discuss the lessons from the staging of EQUAL FOR EQUAL let me first unveil the history behind the celebration of International Women’s Day.

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

The celebration of Women’s Day as we all witness today started as far back as 1909, when the socialist party of America celebrated 15,000 women who protested long work hours, low pay and the lack of voting rights in New York City.

According to the playwright of EQUAL FOR EQUAL, it originally started as National Women’s Day, the monumental annual celebration spread across the world(officially celebrated in 1911), but it was Russia who unknowingly set the March 8th trend. Although International Women’s Day became an official holiday in Russia in 1913, women still experienced difficulties caused by WWI. While men were off at war, women dealt with food shortages and a government who wouldn’t listen to them.

On March 8th, 1917(February 23 in the former Russian calendar), tens of thousands of Russian women took to the streets demanding change. The unified cry for help paved the way for Russian women to be granted voting rights soon after.

This shows that the struggle against gender inequality and the discrimination of the female gender didn’t just start today. But the struggle ensured till today and in Nigeria the government has approved 35% right granted to the women but inspite of this effort the women are still so unsatisfied and they are calling for equal rights for both gender.

Godwin Tom uses this play to demystify the intricacies of women struggle for inequality and suggested means to wining the fight.

Lessons From The Play: Undercovering The Strength Of The Women

Often, the female gender has been regarded as weak and so should play a second fiddle in the society. But the truth is that if you look through beyond the weakness of every woman you will see a resilient of strength that prides in the dignity of motherhood.

 In this play the playwright took time to unveil the strength that underlies in the weakness of every woman, he interprets through the scenes of the play the power which the women have to cause revolutionary change in the society whenever they unanimously agreed in one voice and one action.

This play indicates that the women can change the world by using their feminism struggle to fight against bad norms, laws and traditions of the society.

In the play the playwright portrayed the strength of Ufa Obio women in their zealousness and steadfastness to pursue their demand amidst misunderstanding and abuse by the male counterparts. The women of Ufa Obio stood one ground and embarked on drastic measures to describe their value and importance to the understanding of men.

It’s important for the women to note feminism should not just be blindly described to serve a situation that women must cheat in other to pay back a cheat male partner, but it should be seen as an ontology that drive the female gender to full actualization of their strength of responsibility to changing the horrible and nefarious societal norms.

ON WOMEN’S STRUGGLE OF EQULITY

It is generally believe that a man is the head and woman is the neck. So the head require the assistance of the neck to move likewise the neck requires the approval of the head to move the head.

This shows that both male and female genders are important factors of creation and are both necessary for the sustainability of the human generation.

The play EQUAL FOR EQUAL centers on the struggle for the equality and emancipation of the female gender. The play addressed issues like; women abuse, denial of right to partake in decision making, denial of political rights, denial of economy right etc.

So for the women to win this fight; they must have a well set out strategy that embraces every sense of rationality and logicality. The women should identify their vision before embarking on the mission offeminism. In order word, the movement of feminism should be as a process to fine tune the importance, value, obligation and contribution of everywomanto the progress of human generation.

 I believe that when they successfully establish their values and define their strength the male counterpart will have no option but to grant their demand for equality and allow them the opportunity to impart their values to the growth of the society.

Finally let me end in same vein as the play EQUAL FOR EQUAL concluded that women are indispensible part of everyman’s society and they are important factor to achieving progress in all families which form the larger society. Thus their talents should not be allowed to rot in discrimination and isolation.

I submit that the government and human right agencies should be very concern with matters that involved women abuse. Also, individual families should not see the girl child education as wastefulness of resources because what a male child can do, a female child can do even better.

©The Sensor Newspaper

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