Men take a stand
Sexual harassment in public places is a very common phenomenon across India. Buses, trains, streets, parks—women feel unsafe in any public space because they might be harassed anywhere. But those who raise their voice against this phenomenon, can face dangerous consequences as well. Keenan Santos and Reuben Fernandez from Mumbai, became martyrs in one such incident.
Out for dinner with a group of friends that night, Keenan and Reuben were brutally stabbed to death when they stood up against goons who tried to molest the women in the group. This incident enraged the whole country. The reasons for this kind of brute behaviour by the goons lies in the inherent sexism prevalent in the upbringing of boys and girls. “This is the reasons that boys feel that girls should stay under their thumb,” says Valerian Santos, Keenan's father, who has been fighting to ensure that goons who harass girls are punished.
This tragedy moved Keenan's cousin Jason Temasfieldt to start an organization to counter this kind of warped thinking in men. He called it We the People Foundation. His organization has helped transform the mindset of many boys—including Salman Makrani and Mateen Shaikh. “We used to start the day by harassing girls and we used to harass 10-15 girls in a day,” says Salman. But after meeting Jason, they changed their mindset about women. So much so that they even stood up for a women being harassed on the street.
“When she thanked us for doing this, we felt so good that now we have decided that we won't let this happen anymore,” says Salman. They learnt that being a real man is about standing up for what is right.