A Yes means Yes and No Means NO

The first Slut Walk in Asia happened in Delhi; to me it is symbolic of the 'Rape Crisis' that the city is facing. And how are we dealing with the high incidence of sexual assault in the city? I am sure we are doing the best we can within the limits of the popular thought span. If you were wondering what the thought span is, this might help.

Delhi Police Commissioner says, "You can not drive alone in the city after 2 am and then claim the city is unsafe"

That is how the story began, in response to similar outrageous comments, women around the world followed the steps taken by a group of women in Toronto and began a series of Slutwalks, giving rise to Delhi's 'Slut walk aka Besharmi Morcha'.

Sexual Assault of any form is a violation of a person's dignity to life and so it is the legal system's duty to prevent such acts at all times, scenarios and circumstances. The Police commissioner's statement is just a small example of how large amount of people in the Judicial system think. Do those charged with our safety have a true understanding of sexual assault?

The supreme court of India uses the poorly defined term "modesty" to test around the guilt of a person. What modesty is possessed or is not possessed by a child or a teenager? Sexual assault at any level is a crime and we need to look at it as how we look at any other crime. I will agree that a women in shorts invited rape if we begin to look at a robbery in an unarmed store as intentional negligence by the store and not just plain simple Robbery! I am not drawing parallel to a person and a store but if we apply the rationale of thinking by many people then was not the store unarmed, open and inviting with goodies why not loot it? Stop blaming the victim for the crime, being sexually assaulted is not about what you wear and using it to rationalize inexcusable behavior creates an environment in which the blame falls on the victim. Provocation to rape is ridiculous, especially when provocation is not taken into consideration in any other crime.

The Irony is that sexual assault happens at all ages, among family members, in rural and urban India and yet the society and judiciary speak volumes on the "character", "modesty" and "level of provocation".  In 2008, there was a protest "I never asked for it" where victims around India were encouraged to send in the clothes they were wearing when they were raped. Not surprisingly the display showed Jeans, tops and salwars defying all notions of modesty and the slut theory.

Though the Delhi Slut walk has drawn a lot of criticism I support it wholeheartedly and would like to congratulate the organizers. The walk is not an excuse to derange our culture, dress inappropriately but only to voice out that we do not want to take responsibility of other people's lack of culture or insanity. After all every change began with a unified stand against it, in itself it won’t help but is a tiny step towards awareness and reform. We need to stop taking it lightly, eve teasing, molesting, lewd remarks and sexually objectifying are all serious sexual crimes which are undermined. So take the focus of the clothes and onto the crime!

I support the March, because in Delhi women are not walking down the street only to be able to wear whatever they wish but rather to be able to walk down the street. I hope more women and men believe that sexuality has nothing to do with rape. Waiting to see more cities emulate Delhi.

Don’t make me blame myself, my body, and my clothes for your crime.