What a woman's worth / El valor de una mujer

I have to admit it: I didn't know today was Woman's Day until I tuned into (well sort of anyways, since it's all online), as I do every night whilst cooking dinner, one of my favourite radio shows ran by -you guessed it- a woman. As it were, they had invited some women over to discuss the dire situation of the opposite sex in countries were being a woman is pretty much one of the worst boxes you can tick. Places ranging from Guatemala to Northern Africa where each time a new story came up my desire to turn off the radio was pushed even more: they were so powerful and horrible I was having difficulty, as a man, in accepting that stuff like this can actually happen. Because it's not about a sex issue: the abuse is so brutal the word doesn't fit any longer. Of course we all know this goes on but "knowing" triggers a very different feeling when it's pictured with real stories of real people. I am lucky enough to live in a society and be from a country that takes this particularly seriously and even then we still have several dozen women killed each year by their husbands/ex-husbands/fiancées. And in Europe women have support from the government, the police and the wider society. But for these women, there is no society, no big government to help them. Not even their fellow girlfriends will dare raise their voice in fear of ending up brutally harassed, raped, killed or God knows what. And it's these women who bear the weight of society: they raise kids, cook, go shopping (or walk ten kilometres to the nearest market/well should I say), take care of the elderly...

And not even that far do I need to go. This summer in a certain European country I do not wish to name, it was surprising to see how the small hotel we were staying in was run entirely by the wife and the husband limited himself to...well, sit around all day. A reminder that, despite huge progress, as with most human rights issues in the world there's still a long way to go.

So, from here, all my support and love for all those women out there who have to bear the unbearable. You are not alone.

Debo admitirlo: No sabía que hoy era el Día Internacional de la Mujer hasta que, como todas las noches mientras cocino la cena, sintonicé la radio (bueno, es un decir, puesto que es por Internet) para escuchar uno de mis programas preferidos que, por cierto, dirige una mujer. Como era de esperar, habían invitado a un grupo de mujeres para contar la situación en aquellos lugares en los que ser la mujer es de lo peor que te puede tocar. Sitios como Guatemala, el Magreb... donde ya no es cuestión de machismo puesto que la palabra se queda corta: son situaciones de abuso brutal que, según iban avanzando, incrementaban mis ganas de desconectar la radio. Por supuesto que todos sabemos que esto ocurre, pero "saberlo" encadena una reacción muy distinta cuando a esos hechos se les pone una historia real, con personas reales. Tengo la suerte de vivir en una sociedad donde este problema se toma muy en serio y aún así mueren docenas de mujeres todos los años a manos de sus maridos/ex maridos/compañeros sentimentales. Pero aquí en Europa las mujeres tienen el respaldo de la sociedad, de la policía y en muchos casos de su entorno. Estas mujeres en cambio no tienen nada. Ni siquiera sus amigas alzarán la voz por miedo a acabar maltratadas, violadas, muertas o Dios sabe qué. Y todo esto mientras son estas mujeres las que cargan con familias enteras: cuidan a los hijos, hacen la comida, hacen la compra (que se traduce en una caminata de kilómetros hasta el pozo de agua potable o mercado mas cercano en muchas ocasiones), cuidan de las personas mayores...

Y no me tengo que ir tan lejos. Este verano, en cierto país europeo que no voy a nombrar, resultaba chocante que el pequeño hotel familiar donde nos alojábamos era llevado única y exclusivamente por la mujer mientras el marido se limitaba a....bueno, digamos que no hacía mucho (por ponerlo de alguna manera). Un recordatorio que, como en todo lo que tiene que ver con los derechos humanos en este planeta, todavía queda mucho camino por recorrer.

Por ello desde aquí todo mi apoyo y cariño a esas mujeres que tienen que soportar lo insoportable. No estáis solas.

You could buy me diamonds, you could buy me pearls
Take me on a cruise around the world
Baby you know I'm worth it
Dinner lit by candles, run my bubble bath
Make love tenderly to last and last
Baby you know I'm worth it
Wanna please wanna keep wanna treat your woman right
Not just told but to show that you know she is worth your time
You will lose if you choose to refuse to put her first
She will if she can't find a man who knows her worth....

'Cause a real man knows a real woman when he sees her
And a real woman knows a real man ain't afraid to please her
And a real woman knows a real man always comes first
And a real man just can't deny a woman's worth

If you treat me fairly I'll give you all my goods
Treat you like a real woman should
Baby I know you're worth it
If you never play me, promise not to bluff
I'll hold you down when shit gets rough
Baby I know you're worth it
She rolls the mile makes you smile all the while being true
Don't take for granted the passion that she has for you
You will lose if you choose to refuse to put her first
She will if she can't find a man who knows her worth, oh

No need to read between the lines, spell it out for you
Just hear this song cuz you can't go wrong when you value
A woman, woman, woman, a woman's worth

'Cause a real man knows a real woman when he sees her
And a real woman knows a real man ain't afraid to please her
And a real woman knows a real man always comes first
And a real man just can't deny a woman's worth.

(Alicia Keys- What a woman's worth)