By: Divina Mathur

Feminism is defined as ‘the advocacy of women’s rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes’ or ‘Feminism is a range of political movements, ideologies, and social movements that share a common goal: to define, establish, and achieve the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the genders.’ This basically means that feminism is an ideology, as well as a movement to accomplish a goal – which is women getting equal rights and opportunities as men do in today’s day and age. Feminism doesn’t mean a battle of the sexes – it means that all genders get equal rights.
Many women worldwide are oppressed, solely based on their gender. This is
upsetting, because in numerous cases, men are given the upper hand, purely
because they are men. Men are often preferred over women, because they are
considered ‘strong’ and they are allegedly don’t show any emotions, where as
women are known to be weak and the ‘damsel(s) in distress.’ Men are supposed to be the one’s earning the money for the family, where as women are supposed to cook, clean, and look after the children. This gets on my nerves because I know numerous women who have taken care of their entire family – they had a job, earned enough for their family, cooked, cleaned, and looked after the children.
One of these women is my grandmother. When my father was in the 10th grade, my grandfather passed away. My grandmother was broken, but continued living her life. She was her children’s backbone, and her children were hers. Now, my grandmother didn’t just get a job because she didn’t have the financial support. She had one even before the incident took place, and despite the fact that her life was a mess, she continued earning for her family, and was successful in raising 2 strong and accomplished children. This is just an example of why women should have equal rights as men – and that depriving someone – let alone an entire gender – of their rights based on something that isn’t even remotely justified is purely illogical.
Another thing that deeply angers me is that women aren’t given proper
education, because people believe that they’ll just be married off and then
completely forgotten about – hence education won’t be necessary. My helper faced something very similar. She was only permitted to study till the 4 th grade, and then she was sent off to become a maid. She has told me quite a few times that her dream is to finish her education, and one day, I hope I can fulfil it for her.
Coming back to feminism, many people believe that the idea of it is to give
women more rights than men – which is not true! The idea of feminism is to have equal right for all genders, not for one gender to have more than another. These mislead ideas cause confusion, thus resulting in pushing feminism further away from achieving it’s goals.
Women are slowly, yet surely getting the rights they deserve. It’s a slow
process, but it will take over the world, and inequality based on gender will
surely go down. And I truly hope it does, because the future generations will be brought up in a fair world – a world they deserve.

At least 90% of the Harry Potter fans that I have met think that Severus Snape was a good person. And I beg to differ.

Severus Snape had a frightfully miserable childhood, that much I will admit. And that must have been hard on him – living in such a low-life area, being constantly bullied by his peers, having to return every summer to a place that he hated passionately, and being rejected by a girl he liked.

But that sound quite familiar, doesn’t it?

Oh, right, that’s because Mr. Harry Potter went through exactly the same thing. Except Harry also had the pressure of saving the entire world from downfall and he had to deal with pesky reporters (cough, Rita Skeeter, cough) as well the public mistrusting him and the government turning against him. But all that harry did was have a few emotional outbursts when it became too much. He remained a good person inside despite so much manipulation, and that’s what matters.

Snape? Well, he decided to join a group of racist extremists intent on murdering an entire race of people whom they considered impure. And this is dealing with half the amount of stress that Harry did.

Now, many people will justify his actions by saying, “He was in love with Lily! He had his heart broken! You can’t blame him!” But I don’t agree one bit. Both Severus Snape and James Potter were in love with Lily Evans and she rejected both of them. James responded by becoming a genuinely better person and stopped bullying people unnecessarily, because that was the reason that Lily rejected him. Snape, on the other hand, decided it would be fun to start murdering all other people like her.

Furthermore, in high school, Snape had an ongoing rivalry with the Marauders (James, Remus, Sirius, and Peter). This was the sort of rivalry that many people have in high school, so you wouldn’t assume that it would become such a big deal. But they both allowed it to. Since Severus was a Death Eater (a follower of Voldemort) he knew that Peter Pettigrew was a traitor to the Order of the Phoenix. But when Sirius Black was unfairly convicted and sent to prison for twelve years, he did nothing to stop it, despite being aware of the fact that he was innocent. He could easily have testified and saved an innocent man from twelve years of torture, but chose not to, simply because of a high school rivalry.

Snape also bullied children.  Children, who were excited to learn potions for the first time. And these children, who were supposed to be able to look up to these teachers as mentors, were terrified of him.

I’m sure we all remember that scene, from The Prisoner of Azkaban, where Remus brings the third years a boggart to fight for their Defense Against the Dark Arts class. And how Neville’s greatest fear is Professor Snape, and he makes him wear his grandmother’s clothes? Hilarious, it really was. But Neville Longbottom, a boy whose parents are going to forever be in a mental hospital because they’ve been tortured to insanity – his greatest fear is his Chemistry teacher?

I mean, imagine being that terrified of someone who is supposed to teach you, to mentor you, to guide you, to be your guru – whatever you want to call it.

And when handing out detentions to Neville, Severus was intent on making his life a living hell. In the Order of the Phoenix, he made Neville disembowel toads as a punishment for being late to class, knowing full well that he had a pet toad.

Poor Neville. Snape really did have it out for him, didn’t he? And I don’t think that having the love of your life die is an excuse to make other people live through the same pain that you did. Especially innocent children.

Many people may say, “He became good at the end! That means he is a good person!” Well, let me just clarify that, honey, because you’re not taking the prophecy into account.

The prophecy stated that the one to bring the dark lord’s downfall would be “Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies”. This could have applied to either Harry Potter or Neville Longbottom. Tom Riddle (Lord Voldemort) chose Harry to be his opponent, and this is the reason that Snape betrayed him – because he didn’t want his master to kill the woman he loved. However, if Voldemort had chosen Neville, Severus Snape would have lived and died as the most loyal Death Eater who ever lived.

I get that Severus’ childhood could not have been easy. But do you really think that a bit of bullying and a teenage ‘lost love’ is an excuse for treating everyone else in your life so abominably? Because I sure don’t.

I looked at myself in the mirror and then down at my body, as I realized for the first time that having a “perfect body” was not a blessing. It was a curse. Not that having an “imperfect” body is any easier, though.

It’s like Sebastian said – the seaweed is always greener in somebody else’s lake.

See, people always think that pretty girls have it easy. They’re popular, they can wear anything, all the boys run after them. But is that really the case?

Two hours earlier, I was in the park with Connor. We were just sitting together on a bench and talking, looking at the stars through the branches of the tree. You know, normal couple stuff – when I remembered something Olivia told me earlier. So I asked him why he liked me.

He was fairly confused and looked at me in surprise.

“Why are you asking me this now?” he asked me. “We’ve been dating for three months. Are you questioning our love now?” I shrugged. I mean, I couldn’t exactly tell him that it was because my little sister thought he only cared about my looks and using me as an accessory.

When he didn’t answer immediately, I should have known then that something was wrong. If my boyfriend had to think of why he liked me, surely, he didn’t really. But I was foolish; blinded by love – at least, what I thought was love. I told myself that there were so many things that he loved about me that he was just trying to think of which to say first.

And when he opened his mouth, I was horrified.

“Well, you’re beautiful,” he said. “Absolutely gorgeous. I mean, seriously, the entire football team is jealous that such a drop-dead gorgeous girl is all mine,” he said, snaking his arm around my waist. I turned to him expectantly.

“And?” I asked.

“And…what?”

“What else do you like about me. I meant more about, like, my personality, or who I am…?”

He laughed. “Well, you’re adorable,” he smiled.

I untwined my fingers from his and pushed his arm off my waist. “You’re still only talking about how I look. Is there nothing else you like about me?” I asked angrily.

“Woah, woah, woah,” he exclaimed, putting his hands on my shoulders to steady me. “What’s this all about? What’s the problem? You’re a beautiful girl and you’re mine. We’re in a happy relationship, we’re both popular, and you’re coming with me to prom next month. We’re the perfect couple! Why are you trying to rock the boat?”

I pushed his hands off my shoulders and stood up. “Perfect couple? You know what, I really don’t think so.”

“Maya, where is this coming from? Why are you talking back to me suddenly, as if you’re not agreeing with what I’m saying?”

I scoffed. “This is what I mean! All you care about is yourself; you act as if I don’t have feelings or opinions or…or I’m not a real person. Connor, the only reason you have ever wanted to be with me is for yourself. Like it makes you ‘cool’ or something to have a girlfriend. So that you can use me as your…your accessory, to gain popularity. The only thing that you care about is my looks. Because it makes the football team think you’re cool. You know what, I’m not ‘yours’. You act like I’m your property; like I belong to you. Like…my opinion doesn’t matter and that my job is to make you…feel good about yourself by agreeing with everything you say, and making other guys jealous of you.”

Connor didn’t even reply. He was just staring at me, expressionless. I looked at him expectantly. “Well? Don’t you want to say anything?”

A smile dawned on his face. “You look so hot when you’re angry.”

I couldn’t believe him. Of course, that’s all he was thinking about when I was talking about how I had a personality, had feelings. I walked up to him, and thank god he was still sitting down because it’s so much easier to intimidate people when you’re taller than them.

“Listen up,” I said, getting right into his face. “Women are not just accessories and sexual objects. We are just as real as men and deserve to be treated like it. And I not going to be in a relationship with someone who refuses to acknowledge that.”

With that, I ran home. As fast as I could. I wanted to get away from that jerk as quickly as possible. And when I reached home, I cried. And cried. And cried. For almost two hours.

It probably doesn’t make sense to you that I cried. I had just stood up for my rights and broken up with someone who didn’t respect them. But it’s not that simple.

I had liked Connor for two years before he finally asked me out. Two years. Which is why, as you could imagine, I was over the moon when he did. But during those two years, I changed myself. I started dressing differently and I grew out my hair. I told myself that I wasn’t changing for him and that I was changing for me. I knew that I was lying to myself, but I did it anyway. That’s what made this hurt so much more. That despite doing so much for him, he didn’t care about me.

I’ve always had this body though. I didn’t change that for him. Yet he sexualized me like I belonged to him alone.

If that is was my natural body, then was I always going to be sexualized? Were people always going to want to be my friend just for my body? All I wanted was for someone to love me for who I was. And that’s almost impossible when you’re a girl with society’s definition of a ‘perfect body’.

So maybe fat people do have it easier. Maybe ugly people do too. Because when you’re ugly and someone loves you, you know that they love you for who you are.

Mr. Dev Joshi, the Logi for the HSC Committee who showed up in jeans and a plaid shirt for MUN, looked “more like a chaiwalla than a logi.” His swoopy, Justin Bieber- styled hair was one of the highlights of this weekend. He seemed to be the only person in the HSC to be enjoying his duties to the fullest. He seemed to be watching something on his phone while committee was on and communication lines were closed. Many of the updates in committee were accompanied by media, in which Joshi was an extremely appreciated model. He wore slightly more formal clothes on Sunday, however maintained the body language and attitude of a chaiwalla rather than a logi.

By Divina and Nayantara

Knowing that you have to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems in a mere 12 hours can be intimidating. So, here are some tips to dazzle committee and your chairs with well-researched information and snappy dialogue. 

1. Make a list of points that affect your country

It can be quite overwhelming to have the pressure of an entire country’s problems riding on your Dolce & Gabbana jacketed shoulders. So, de-construct your argument and break down the 50-page long study guide you were sent, into a list of the most important issues pertaining to your country. This is bound to boost your confidence, and you also show everyone that you know what you’re talking about!

2. Focus on one point at a time, when speaking and with paperwork

Over the course of committee, many ideas and solutions are brought up. The topics being discussed are vast, therefore addressing individual points at a time may be challenging, but it makes your speech or paperwork way more effective! Isn’t it nicer to listen to a speech that is well-thought out and structured? Focusing on an individual matter gives you more confidence and a feeling that you know what you’re talking about, which helps untie the uncomfortable knot in your stomach when you speak. Articulating your arguments also makes you sound smarter :p

By Alina Vaidya Mahadevan

  India has always been incredibly diverse in terms of race, religion, and culture. India has a lot of minority groups, one of them being Muslims (who make up 14.2% of Indian population.) Most Muslims haven’t had an easy life living in India. They have been discriminated since partition in 1947.  In fact, during the battle for independence, Mohammad Ali Jinnah (leader of the Muslim League) actually thought of India as “two nations”- the Hindus and the Muslims. So much so, that he feared that his coreligionists would be permanent minorities in a Hindu dominated country.

  Muslims have suffered in India throughout history because of media, some of our past ruling parties, and Hindu-Muslims disputes.

   Islamophobia in the media refers to the occurrence or perception that media outlets tend to cover Muslims or Islam-related topics in a negative light. In a lot of articles/ videos, the Indian media tries to link Muslims with crime. Attempts are being made to create fear, hatred, and prejudice against Islam. For example, in the beginning of 2018, there was an attack on a school bus in Gurgaon. The attack was widely condemned in India. Muslims were dragged into this, because those spreading Islamophobia were up to their usual antics. A couple of anti-Muslim people started spreading a message, which blamed 3 Muslims for the attack (without any evidence whatsoever.) Because of this, those Muslims were held responsible for something they didn’t do, even after the police clarified that no members of the Muslim community had anything to do with the event. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egcn8yYPZ4A)

  Many social scientists feel that a lot of the acts of violence against Muslims are institutionally supported, particularly by political parties and organizations. In particular, scholars fault the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena for complicity in these incidents, and of using violence against Muslims as a part of a larger electoral strategy.  For example, researches done by Michael Biggs (an Associate Professor in Sociology) and Raheel Dhattiwala (an author, who writes about ethnic violence, specifically the Hindu-Muslim violence in India have stated that killings are far higher in areas where the BJP faces stiff electoral opposition than in areas in which it is already strong. In 1989, the north of India saw an increase in orchestrated attacks on Muslims, and the BJP had further success in the local and state elections. 

  There has also been violence against Muslims. There have been several instances of religious violence against Muslims since Partition of India in 1947, frequently in the form of violent attacks Muslims by Hindu mobs that form a pattern of communal violence between the majority Hindu and minority Muslim communities. Over 10,000 people have been killed in Hindu-Muslim communal violence since 1950 in 6,933 instances of communal violence between 1954 and 1982. 

  Religious minority groups are amongst those who encounter severe exclusion, discrimination and oppression. In case of Indian-Muslims as a religious marginalized community, these two concepts overlap. However, concern with ‘marginalization’ is relatively recent, and it is crucial to check the development on the marginalized groups. As considerable evidence exists, the process of ‘marginalization’ of minority communities exists in almost all societies and nothing shows that the same is not true of Muslims in India to a greater or a lesser degree. 

  None of this is justified. Muslims, or any other group for that matter, shouldn’t be oppressed because of their religion. However, one could say that Muslims are discriminated only to a certain extent. It must be considered that the Indian prejudice against Islam is not absolute. If there was 100% Islamophobia in India, then there wouldn’t have been a Muslim President of India – Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam – in the past. A lot of our famous Bollywood actors (such as Shahrukh Khan, Aamir Khan, etc.) who are Muslims wouldn’t be apart of the Indian film industry. Yes, there have been numerous instances of violence and discrimination against Muslims  in the recent past, but it is also important to take into account the cultural and political importances the Muslim community has held in India.

A lot of ways to combat this have been tried in the past, but not all of them have been successful. As educated individuals, we can teach the coming generations about Islamophobia, and how it is unfair and unjust to oppress an entire group of people just because of the beliefs of others. Another way to combat this would be to remind people that India is a secular nation, which means that we aren’t connected with religious or spiritual matters. This is important to remember, because it reminds us of what we truly believe, and what we should continue believing to make India, and the world a better place.