For You Are a Woman

Don't be late,

Get home by dark.

Cover yourself,

Don't dress up.

Don't roam alone;

Don't roam at all.

Stay at home,

Or prepare to take the fall.

For you are a woman

And you will be objectified.

You will be touched without consent

And you will be petrified.

You are to stay safe

For you are born a woman.

It's not the duty of a man

To act unless consent is given.

For he is a man.

And boys will be boys.

For boys cannot be under control,

And men love to be in control.

For it is your fault to trust,

And not his fault to betray it.

For it is your fault to love,

And not his fault to wither it.

You will be blamed, darling,

You'll always be blamed.

You cannot raise your voice then,

For you shall be shamed.

It is not your fault

That you were asked to dress modestly,

Instead of them

Being asked to act respectfully.

But it is your fault to work outside

When public sphere is a man's upside.

For a man can stalk you and scare you.

And in it, he shall take pride.

For it is your fate to be born a woman.

Your fate to be alive.

In a cruel world of patriarchy,

Every right you shall be denied.