Salient. Victoria University Student Newspaper. Vol. 38, No. 18. July 23rd 1975

Road to Women's Liberation

Road to Women's Liberation

Before the United Nations proclaimed 1975 to be International Women's Year, women had already gone through a long and painful process to fight for equality and their rights.

The meaning of women's liberation is to make the women themselves realise, they, like men, are the host and makers of the society they are living in. They should be considered as human beings. The real enemies of women's liberation are not men perse, but the repressive social structure that results in men oppressing women. Women will not be liberated as long as the social structure which generates such ideas persists.

The history of women's liberation signifies the process of women's political consciousness. The more struggles against direct and indirect oppression women go through, the better will they realise the road to women's liberation. Like any other liberation movement (e.g. the Negro's liberation movement) political consciousness is the prime criteria for women's liberation.

Women's liberation should not be viewed in isolation. Under the same repressive social structure, men are oppressed too, as they are made use of as the tools to oppress women. Therefore, viewing women's liberation movement to be a justified struggle, men must actively participate. Unless men realise the meaning of equality, and feel a want for equality, women's liberation will not be sucessful. To quote from one wiseman, "the people cannot attain its full liberation until women are fully liberated". Therefore women's liberation should not be viewed only as women's career, but also men's career, and the people's career in general.

Reprinted from 'Singapore Undergrad'