I went to the Aurat March for the very first time and here’s what I saw

My perception of the Aurat March was formed entirely by social media and it couldn’t have been more further from the truth.

Due to privacy concerns, the author wishes to remain anonymous I don’t have permission to go to Aurat March but I still went yesterday. I and many women across this country sneaked out of our homes, schools and workplaces on March 8, all in a bid to attend our very first Aurat March on Women’s Day. If you’ve lived in Pakistan long enough, you’ll know just how controversial Aurat Marches are. They’re the seedbeds of all that is behaya and fahash, many argue, a soapbox that promotes looking down upon family values. WhatsApp messages urge family elders to keep their daughters, wives and mothers away from the Aurat March, and our elders solemnly listen and restrict permission. I could have sneaked out to attend the Aurat March in previous years as well but it wasn’t just the lack of permission that held me back. The vilification on social media left an impression on me. My perception of the Aurat March was formed entirely on what I saw on social media, and a lot of what you see on social media is not a kind and authentic take on what the march stands for. From my vantage point, which was my phone screen, it felt like the Aurat March was held for only a few, a privileged section of society, Men and women who are the beneficiaries of socioeconomic privileges that the majority don’t have. Privilege that shields them from many forms of oppression and discrimination.

I did not see myself represented in the pictures that flooded social media. A part of me wanted to see whether this was the reality onground as well. I decided to attend this year’s march, making it a point to look beyond social media and read the manifesto to know what the Aurat March in Karachi was really about. Source: mages.dawn.com