Patriarchy Harms All Genders, Not Just Women

Patriarchy Harms All Genders, Not Just Women
Many think that patriarchy and patriarchal violence only affect women, but this is false. Patriarchy deters all genders from being free.

The recent rape and suicide of a teenager in Battagram proves this and so does the brutal murder of Afzal Kohistani. In the first instance, two men raped a 15-year-old boy from KP. They filmed the rape, and used this to blackmail him. Eventually, the teenager committed suicide.

The suspects may be punished, but the young boy died because of patriarchal violence. Patriarchy is a structure in which the men hold power by excluding women, to exert this power and prove their influence, they may use violence. A second instance of patriarchy affecting men along with women can be seen in the Kohistani case.

Here, three brothers were murdered, along with four women, to protect familial honour. Afzal, one of the brothers, was fighting these archaic systems. He paid the price in blood.

Now, his nephew, another victim of the patriarchy is rotting in jail. Why do we perpetuate a system that harms everyone involved?

Naya Daur Media (NDM) is a bi-lingual progressive digital media platform aiming to inform and educate Pakistanis at home and abroad. Subscribe to our YouTube channel here Follow us on Facebook   Twitter and Instagram Visit our Urdu website