Essay A Woman Among Warlords PDF

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Essay - a woman among warlords...

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Taylor Shuman Professor Ewig Gender and Women’s Studies 102 02 December 2015 The Quiet Camaraderie of Afghan Women Modern Afghanistan is known to Western countries as a place where grave injustices against women and children occur daily. Individuals do not understand, however, the means in which this came to be, and why they remain today. One reason for this is that the American-backed regime in control Afghanistan today employs techniques similar to those of the Taliban, and in some ways, commit worse atrocities than the oppressive regime did prior to its fall. With the fall of the Taliban came promises of peace, prosperity, and a new Afghanistan. However, these soft promises fabricated a more destructive administration, which unfortunately came to be through minor help of the U.S. government. Now, warlords in power in Afghanistan victimize Afghan women and children. They deprive them of their basic human rights, including forcing them to wear a veil, and forbidding them from going outside without the accompaniment of a male. Education is not provided for women, although it is for their male counterparts. Afghan women live their lives in fear of being kidnapped, raped, and murdered. These actions are used to terrorize them, and it is impossible for them to live their daily lives without caution. The false portrayal of Middle Eastern lifestyle through social media on a global level has led to the oppression of innocent Afghans; despite these monstrosities, Afghan women have found the means to secure their right and be heard, through media, strength, and fellowship. Afghan Women, including Malalai Joya, author of A Woman Among Warlords, have used media platforms to gain a sense of control over their lives. The media is used as a way for Afghan women to cry out for help from the international community despite the government’s efforts to silence them. Western countries have convinced the public that through the invasion of Afghanistan, free press has been implemented and successful. Countries such as the U.S. have used their power over media outlets to taint it, showing only what tarnishes the reputation of Afghanistan, not their own. This is called gendered

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rhetoric, and is used in media outlets across the world to show only one side of the War on Terror. Through this social fallacy, women are portrayed as passive victims needing to be saved, instead of paying attention to the actual situation in Afghanistan (Ewig November 23). This gendered rhetoric in the media is used to deny women agency, even though during extreme oppression, women want nothing more than for their voices to be heard. According Joya, “Under U.S. occupation warlords have been trained by the United States on how to talk about democracy and women’s rights, and deliver nice speeches, but they do not believe in any of it, and only know the language of the gun when they face their opponents” (156). Media in Afghanistan is free, unless it tries to criticize warlords and officials; only then does posting cause pressing concerns. This is where the importance of women comes in. In crying out for help to the international community, words are used as the most powerful weapon to advocate for equality. Speaking the truth for the Afghan people who have been silenced for so long has been a way to educate the international community and thus, further women and their ability to make their own decisions. From the moment Joya gave her first speech at the United Nations convention, she would never be safe again, yet she knew she had to speak out for the sake of the Afghan people. After this defining moment in her career, articles ran world-wide about the actual situation of women in Afghanistan in newspapers such as the New York Times, which is read by people all over (Joya 75). Remaining silent is not an option for Afghan women. Those who have the courage must speak out for those who do not, as freedom lies in the pearls of wisdom that women have to offer. In shedding light on the current situation for women in Afghanistan, Afghan women are taking matters into their own hands in order to give women of the next generation the choice to make their own decisions. Women in Afghanistan also claim their own agency through uniting in the fight to help one another. Across Afghanistan, women have risen up against the oppressive institutions that seek to put them down. They rely on support to find control, balance, and individualism in their lives. They form a collective agency as they come together to help one another. After a long night of work, Joya decided to return home past the curfew hour for women, endangering her own life. Women were not allowed out past a certain time, and knowing this, Joya put her life at risk as she chose to go home to her family. Alone

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quickly walking down the dark, narrow streets of Herat, Joya was being followed by a Toyota pickup truck filled with Taliban men on patrol. She knew her life was in danger; in order to avoid the men, she knocked on the door of the first home she came to. An older woman answered the door and even though she saw the Talibanz waiting outside, she let Joya enter. Without her, Joya would have likely been beaten, raped, or worse. According to Joya, “Every day in Afghanistan, even now, hundreds if not thousands of ordinary women act out these small gestures of solidarity with each other. By necessity, after decades of brutality, we are our sisters’ keepers” (Joya 48). She emphasizes the importance of these small gestures. In the moment, the actions may endanger the lives of the women carrying them out, however, they further the rights of women as a whole. Women have no choice but to look out for one another against the powerful Taliban regime if they want any sort of leverage on their lives. As scary as potential consequences are, women are fully capable, and must reach an open arm to one in need. These small gestures act to defy the oppressive regime that defines Afghanistan. Not only must Afghan women voice their struggles, but they stand for the advocation of their rights. Although Western countries see Afghanistan as a lost cause, women deserve the right to make decisions regarding their lives, and through the voicing of their struggles they are doing so. In Afghanistan “post-surge” the term “Afghan good enough” was coined. This is the mentality of the Western world; it states that Afghanistan is essentially a lost cause, so the country needs to maintain enough stability to let U.S. troops pull out of the area (Ewig November 30). It is evident that Afghanistan’s best interest is not taken into account here, and all the promises of peace, stability, and prosperity that were promised with the removal of the Taliban disappeared. Taliban actions have been rising since 2012 when the U.S. left Afghanistan. In 2013, 20% more women were killed than in 2012, when the U.S. still occupied Afghanistan (Ewig November 30). Lacking in long-term change, the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan mostly hurt the people, especially women. In her novel, Joya asserts that Afghanistan would be better off without U.S. forces completely. She says, “We are not a helpless county. We have been able to manage our own affairs, and women's rights have not always been in such a terrible state. It is the policies of big powers intervening and backing the most extreme elements of Afghanistan

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that have rolled back the rights of women” (179). She claims that U.S. and other Western involvement has only taken Afghanistan back in terms of progress. In fact, prior to Soviet invasion, women had a relatively equal status to men, they were educated, and they were central to Afghan identity (Ewig November 23). Since Western involvement, women have been turned into objects to be conquered, putting them in a never ending cycle of oppression. Joya also asserts that the advancements made by women in Afghanistan were not made with the help of western powers, but by the voices of Afghan women as they speak up. She states, “The freedoms achieved by women were not the result of some invasion from the West, but from the development of our own society, our own political process, and the struggle of democraticminded forces of Afghanistan who risked death for their beliefs” (182). Democracy and equality of Afghan women can only be achieved with the push of Afghan women themselves coming together for their right to make their own decisions. Women’s pain and tragedy can be turned into something positive by advocating for their rights, which is something Afghan women have proven they are capable to do. Women in Afghanistan have attempted to claim their agency, or their ability to make their own decisions through the media, through support of one another, and through their independence as a country from foreign invasion. In shining a light on the real problems of women in Afghanistan today, even the most misogynistic humans can be turned into the biggest advocates for women’s rights, when provided the most factual truth. It is the duty of Afghan women to be the flashlight that guides the international community in supporting their cause.

Works Cited Ewig, Christina. November 23, 2015. “Gender and the War on Terror.” Ewig, Christina. November 30, 2015. “Women, Islam, and Afghanistan Today.” Joya, Malalai, and Derrick O'Keefe. 2009. A Woman Among Warlords: The Extraordinary Story of an Afghan Who Dared to Raise Her Voice. New York: Scribner....