Valentine’s Day: A Day of repentance?

14^th February, the date which is more commonly known as Valentine’s Day is imminent. The week when flowers and chocolates are suddenly sold at 10x their actual price or the week when ‘love’ is supposed to be everyone’s favorite term is upon us.

But it’s not all just roses and sunshine; looking into it from a neutral perspective; we may find out the actual cost that women have to pay for the day which has some sketchy Roman origins.

An increase in cases of woman harassment is a common occurrence during the month of February. Valentine’s Day can be seen as a prime opportunity to break sexual harassment laws and needs to be looked upon by the government.

Picture Courtesy: Google

A study was recently conducted regarding the Valentine’s Day celebrations in different cities corresponding level of safety in these cities in India.  Cities like the City of Agra, Pune, and Jammu etc. were included. There was a small correlation between lack of safety and the level of celebrations being conducted in a city.

Another aspect involving women safety has to be the religious beliefs and backward thinking amongst the various spiritual groups of our country. Some places have experienced protests from different political parties or women have been harassed for trying to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Its one thing to argue women’s safety on such occasions but it’s completely wrong to prevent them freedom of choice or to force women to behave in a specific and ancient manner.

Valentine’s Day means sharing cards and flowers amongst your loved ones. This whole month has a huge effect on the families of women employees who have to work extra-time just to ensure that every order for flowers is met. An example of city of Facatativá in Colombia sheds some light on this issue.

Colombia is the world’s second largest flower exporter and the Valentine’s Day has an effect on the lives of the huge woman workforce of the country. This is not just applicable to Colombia but is an example of how women employees are treated in our country.

Picture Courtesy: Google

Valentine’s Day is still a symbol of happiness and love and cannot be completely abolished but steps can be taken to ensure women safety by the government and the people.

Specific laws are one way of solving this issue. Stricter sexual harassment laws, police protection at common places for valentine’s celebrations and ensuring that people are well informed on how to respect women’s privacy can be considered as a good start towards making Valentine’s Day as a day of  love and not a day of remorse.

Content Writer: Saksham Diwan