Anti-Rape Jeans – Wanted: Women Warriors

 

 

Deterrents to Rape by Young Women Inventors

‘Anti-rape jeans’ – the term seems to have gone viral on social media. A link to an article that I posted about this phenomenon was seen by over 190,114 people on the Lassi with Lavina page,  over 22,126 have clicked on the shortlink and 228 have shared it.  The result to articles in the Guardian and Daily Mail are even more mind-boggling – with over 9660 shares.

Clearly, this is a topic which strikes a chord with everyone. According to statistics, a rape occurs every 22 minutes somewhere in India and each case diminishes us all. Everyone is sick to the heart, is looking for solutions and every new idea is welcomed because it brings hope for change.

 

 

 The Hi-Tech Anti-Rape Jeans & Sandals

After all, it’s not only anti-rape jeans but also anti-rape sandals and yes, even a wonder bra – all designed by young women students in of all places, Varanasi.  College students Diksha Pathak 21, and Anjali Srivastava, 23, are the inventors of the jeans which are outfitted with a small electronic button which sends an alarm not only to the nearest police station but also has a tracking device which via GPS guides the police to the crime scene.

As the New York Post wrote:

There are already as many as 200 police stations capable of receiving the alarm in Varanasi and its surrounding areas. Tests will be carried out next month, and lawmakers may press for the technology to be expanded nationwide if they’re successful.

The Daily Mail wrote:

‘We have been thinking of making this device for a long time,’ said Pathak, a science student and daughter of a cab driver.

‘My father is often making himself ill with worry each time I am coming home late.

‘These terrible gang rapes of women that we have heard so much about recently shocked me and my colleague to the very core. Hopefully no other women will have to suffer if they are wearing our clothing.’

 The Inventors of the Anti-Rape Jeans

 

 

Rt.Com had some more information about the bra and sandals:

 

 

Sandals that deliver electric shocks and jeans that have an inbuilt SOS button were showcased by college girls in the state of Uttar Pradesh – one of the highest in terms of crime levels.

Two computer science students at a private engineering college in the city of Varanasi, Rijul Pandey and Shalini Yadav, engineered and designed the sandals, which apart from the electric shock, send out an SOS signal to all the victim’s phone contacts.

“We conceived of this idea six months ago. While there are pepper sprays and other such things on the market, we thought of developing safety devices that don’t need to be carried separately. The moment we hit someone with our sandal, it would send messages to friends and family members. It will also give a shock to the criminals and immobilize them for a few seconds. It can be used by any girl,” the creators told The Guardian.

 

Can Anti-Rape Jeans Stop the Rampage?

Given the fact that the information can be sent out to a number of people may act as a deterrent but the more this is publicized, the more it will lose impact. What if the rapists pull off the sandals, the tiny device from the jeans and underwear? What of the many village women who have neither jeans or access to police stations close by? What when the crimes take place within the family and perpetuated on children?

Yet, considering how serious the issue of rape has become in India, any deterrents will be a help. The viral appeal of an anti-rape pair of jeans shows how much longing there is to find a solution of strength for women, something that they can do for themselves at any time of the day or night.

“Kudos to these ladies, but very sad that the jeans are so badly needed,” wrote Melanie Delon Pollack, commenting on the link.

Aseem Ashtana wrote: “Add a ‘shock’ button too that the lady can activate if necessary.”

Rachna Daryanani wrote, “And the police have to be trained to respond immediately! Often police negligence is part of the problem.”

Ajay Sindwani commented: “Great idea but it’s a tragic flaw to depend on Indian police. You could sell this for much higher if for profit security companies were paged.”

“Can they trust the police to protect them?” asks Pradeep Mehta.

As Suresh Balchandani pointed out : “But then the police still needs to respond to the distress signal. In case of Badaun rape, police refused to act despite the father pleading with them to save his daughter & niece. Technology is a good tool but there have to be institutions that are independent, responsive and efficient to address the ills of the society. The crux of all the problems in India lies in the institutions being subservient to either politicians or local high caste goons.”

 

Looking for Answers

Indeed, who would have thought in the old days that it would come to this, that we have to safeguard ourselves against our own community?  Is it a situation entirely of our own making, where society just hasn’t given the right direction or guidance to young men and where years of female infanticide have seriously messed up the male-female ratio?

“We should be looking into eradicating this problem from its roots, not just creating a band-aid for an appalling situation festering in our society,” comments Priya Singh on the Lassi with Lavina FB page. “The root of this evil can only be eradicated by educating our children. In schools and in our homes, specially concentrating on educating young boys on how to treat women.

First and foremost fathers should respect their womenfolk so that children can learn from these actions. Most men who disrespect women did not have any positive role models to look up to, growing up. They watched their fathers abuse and dominate their mothers and other women in the household and decided during that impressionable time that this was acceptable behavior for men towards women.

This is a long term plan but the only way we can lay down the foundation of a society where men and women grow up respecting and treating each other as equals. Pants against rape, or whatever else are just short term solutions.”

“So every child, girl and woman has to wear a pair of jeans in order to be safe? Treating girls and women with respect starts at home…” says Prem Kishore.

What do you think? Do we need to do battle with our jeans – or our genes? Chivalry may be dead but we can at least be civil and treat each other like human beings.