The article in ‘The Indian Express’ on the women in space made sense. It read ‘Weighed Down’ & we are. The social, political, work environment & also at home the gender rules! Why your work distribution works this way! The only way!!
Valentina Tereshkova says, ‘On Earth, men & women are taking the same risks. Why shouldn’t we be taking the same risks in space?’ So true. Over 50 years have passed since she became the first woman in space, Yet when it comes to female astronauts the curiosity remains around their bodies & the traditional duties they have to perform. Professionally the match their male colleagues, step for step.
The number of females in space are abysmally low. According to UN, only 11 percent of the astronauts have been women. Interestingly, the first ever all women space walk was cancelled in 2019 because there were not enough space suits to fit them! Would it happen if the team had all men???
There is significantly less data on the effects of microgravity on women’s bodies. But the data can be available only if they frequently walk in space! It’s a vicious circle. If the woman’s body is strong enough to give birth to a living being, it should be strong enough to space walk! Should be a sky walk for her!!!
In 1983, Sally Ride became the first woman in space. A lot of attention was focussed on one question, ‘What makeup would she use aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger?’ She remembers this vividly in an interview immediately after her first space trip. ‘They don’t care about how well prepared I was to operate the Space shuttle arm or deploy communications satellites’ she must have been livid but controlled herself.
Ride once said, the weightlessness experienced in space may be a ‘great equaliser’ but on terra firma, gender equality remains a distant dream. From the birth till death the body remains the major issue. A woman cannot be thought of without her body!!
When the Chinese astronaut Wang Yaping stayed on board China’s Tiangong space station for six months, she had to face all the ridiculous questions. An Official from the China National Space Administration said on state television network, ‘Female astronauts may be in better condition after putting on makeup’. Why should he bother about the makeup?
Also there was a lot of chatter about Wang’s five year old child. Her two male colleagues were not asked about their families. How she would mange her menstrual cycle in space is entirely her personal issue! Why should she answer questions that have no relevance?? Her preparedness was unquestionable!
The pay, treatment & duties are always secondary. Right from the woman labourer nothing has changed. Not money, but the respect is what we require, unconditional! We needn’t prove at every step!
‘Hidden Figures’ has so much to say & some more. The working conditions have not really improved. Only the women come prepared to battle! Why should it be a battle & not a mere workplace???
I believe in equality always. Unconditional. Hope to see it in my lifetime.
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