In India, a Shifting Demographic and Historic Discussion of Gender Roles

The nation of India is facing a wave of painful soul searching that has brought women and men out onto the streets. The story of a young woman student brutally raped and left to die on the streets of Delhi who finally did die of her wounds last Friday has motivated an historic discussion of gender roles, the enslavement of men and women by outmoded traditions, and the consequences of national economic success.This is the story of every Indian woman demonstrators have been shouting on the streets. Tolerance of violence against women in pop culture, a male dominated criminal justice system, and rising economic disparities between rich and poor are all seem to be contributors to this growing brutality — but one of the main factors may be demographic. Valerie M. Hudson is a co-author of “Bare Branches: The Security Implications of Asia’s Surplus Male Population.”