In Belarus, Women Pose In Stockings To Back Tights Model Who Got Arrested For Protests. This Reminds Me Of Rhea Chakraborty’s Smash The Patriarchy Controversy
There is a saying that goes, ‘when women support each other, incredible things happen’. In my opinion, truer words have not been spoken. Women standing up for another woman is so empowering and powerful and it is evident from the multiple instances we have seen in the past. A couple of months ago, Finnish PM sanna Marine was criticised for wearing a low-cut blazer for a magazine photoshoot, in response to which women started posing in plunging suits on social media to back their PM. Another such solidarity flash has come to light but this time, it is the Belarus women who are standing up for the former Miss Belarus Olga Khizinkova who got convicted for an anti-government protest.
The 34-year-old beauty queen is a tights model who was arrested for the protests against the re-election of President Lukashenko which allegedly was faked. Women took to their social media account to pose in stocking with a box of tights that Khizinkova endorsed. Some of the pictures also feature red and white sashes, to represent the colours of the flag of the ill-fated Belarusian National Republic during 1918-19. This display of solidarity among Belarus women is so powerful.
The way I see feminism, it has nothing to do with men. It is all about uplifting and supporting other women and fighting for each other, whether it is equal opportunities or pay or basic rights as our male counterparts. Although, sadly, not all women understand the concept, let alone having each other’s back and in fact bring other women down. We saw it in our own country when Rhea Chakraborty suffered infamy and humiliation without even being proven guilty for the murder of actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
Although the Bollywood actresses backed her later and demanded justice for her, she didn’t have even a sliver of sympathy or support from the female masses during the long course of her trial. Instead, she was targeted, abused and threatened by men and women alike. I think we can all learn a thing or two from these women who unapologetically stood up for their fellow countrywoman who was in the right.
Model Olga Khizinkova, named Miss Belarus in 2008, has been in prison since last month for protesting against the government & faces a longer spell. Her supporters have taken to sharing photos of themselves in their tights, as a show of solidarity. https://t.co/EjS6H8MNUR
— Bryan MacDonald (@27khv) December 16, 2020
Also Read: Finnish Women Pose in Low-Cut Jackets To Back Their PM After She Was Called Out For Wearing A Similar Blazer For A Fashion Magazine. What A Cool Move!
The pictures have women showing their legs in black stockings with the hashtag #IamOlgaKhizinkova to shed light on the imprisonment of the former Miss Belarus. People came in huge numbers for the unauthorised rally against the re-election of the president and the treatment of protestors by the officials has been allegedly brutal with torture and extrajudicial killings reported. Khizinkova was a part of the protest and was imprisoned last month in November. Social media being the most powerful medium for bringing something to attention, Belarus women have wielded the platforms to protest against the arrest of Khizinkova.
This powerful move by the women of Belarus makes me reminisce about how Rhea Chakraborty was never treated fairly by the women of India. The media and the so-called fans of late Sushant Singh Rajput hounded her and put all sorts of labels and blames for deceiving and duping him as soon as the investigation started. She fell victim to massive trolling, rape threats, sexist slurs, death threats and was ultimately branded a witch by not only men but sadly, women too.
She became a national villain overnight and was judged for the most nonsensical of things like her clothes. Her ‘Smash The Patriarchy’ T-shirt was taken as a symbol of guiltless audacity while her salwar suit was called a publicity stunt and a propaganda to look sanskari. She deserved a better and fair treatment from at least Indian women, if not nationwide support, but certainly not the heckling and abuses that she faced all throughout the trial. The social media protest of Belurus and Finnish women against the trolls and arrest of another woman is a lesson on female solidarity we should have learnt a long ago.
