Abstract
Migration is broadly interpreted to mean the movement of people for accessing better life prospects. However, when we deconstruct this phenomenon of ‘movement of people’ to the ‘movement of single women’ this brings forth intricacies of gender equations which further problematises migration outcomes, when women struggle to navigate their space and negotiate with the gendered challenges of a new city. Nevertheless, it is this nature of migration which can be explored to evaluate the empowerment of women. In this context, the article argues that when women choose to migrate as independent individuals for accessing education and employment, they experience empowerment which is manifested in their exercise of choice, autonomy and freedom in a new city.
Introduction
Often the intricacies of gender are not stringently probed when it comes to migration and specifically migration by women, assuming it to be ‘either residual, in the process or dependent followers’ (Bhatt, 2009; Mazumdar, 2013, cited in Singh et al., 2015, p. 2), thereby, undermining the relevance of exploring women’s experiential lived realities which significantly contribute towards shaping our understanding of empowerment. Migration is perceived to have ‘the potential to improve women’s self-respect, their dignity and enhance their freedom to act in pursuit of their personal goal’ (Gaye & Jha, 2011, pp. 49–50). In other words, migration itself is an opportunity which can unlock the gateway to a dignified life for women in an unequal space (governed by gender norms) which can pave the way for their liberation from rigid gender roles and thereby can act as an empowering experience.
According to Graeme Hugo, ‘migration can be both a cause and consequence of female empowerment’ (cited in Gaye & Jha, 2011, p. 49) in which women are a regulator of their lives for bringing empowering change. This empowering change has been manifested in this study, where single, independent, middle class, divorced or unmarried Indian women with higher education (graduation, post-graduation or professional skill learning) and employed as professionals in the organised sector have been taken as migrants. By virtue of their migration, they have achieved autonomous empowering positions with exertion of choices which have further prompted their staying on as migrants in a new city. Migration has not only been the cause of their empowerment, but has also brought about consequential changes in their social and economic position (transformative changes from dependent to independent) when they have achieved financial independence (that is, neither dependent nor accountable for financial matters) along with the exercise of choice, autonomy and freedom.
However, this assertion of emancipation by single women from gendered norms (which places women in a subordinated, dependent, passive and subjugated position) becomes far more challenging specifically when we locate the study in the Indian context where marriage is often considered to be a means of getting accepted in a society. Krishna Kumari says, ‘problems and difficulties of single women are multi-dimensional, and they need a deep probe’ (1987, cited in Parmar, 2018, p. 6). Consequently, in a gendered context, the very same liberation which is considered as empowering often brings retaliation, non-acceptance and gendered challenges as it is perceived to challenge conventional social norms. Hence, a single woman is faced with innumerable difficulties such as ‘financial, occupational, neighbourhood’ (Jethani, 1994, cited in Parmar, 2018, p. 6) to concerns of accommodation, or a gender bias treatment at the workplace. And this is what this study is aiming to explore by locating the element of gender in interrogating their survival, struggling, empowering and disempowering lived realities in a context where they are navigating spaces (struggling to accomplish their independent identity) in an unequal setting.
The study applies Naila Kabeer’s framework to understand empowerment by using the three criterion of agency, resources and achievements in the journey of single, independent women. By resources we mean not just economic or material resources but also ‘human and social resources’ (Kabeer, 1999, p. 3) which are acquired when women access education, employment and make a social circle in a migrant city. Next is agency, the ‘ability to define one’s goals and act upon them or what feminists have called the power within’ (Kabeer, 1999, p. 3). This is accomplished when women acquire the confidence to struggle despite all odds. This phase involves the usage of various mechanisms which range from ‘bargaining, negotiation, subversion to resistance’ (Kabeer, 1999, p. 3). Last is achievement, which refers to the outcome (Kabeer, 1999, p. 3) of their effort and is expressed in their attainment of an ability to exercise their agency and take charge of their lives and consequently, their empowerment.
The essence of this independent migration is examined in terms of single women’s empowering as well as disempowering experiences which is expressed in their exercise of choice, autonomy and freedom. The choice in this study stands for choice of choosing their career, education, accommodation, lifestyle, workplace, outings and social circle, among others. Autonomy is taken for autonomous decision-making, where they are owners of their decisions whether it is financial decisions, quitting jobs, staying out at night, trips with male colleagues, fighting against a workplace bias or even registering a First Information Report (FIR) which are generally controlled by others. And freedom is the spirit of living on their own terms by resisting biased structure and practices which subjugates women. Therefore, the article intends to critically evaluate the empowerment of single, migrant women in terms of their access to resources, agency and achievement which is expressed in their exercise of choice, autonomy and freedom in a gendered society.
Contextualising Gender, Migration and Empowerment
According to Monica Boyd and Elisabeth C. Grieco (2003, p. 2), ‘gender is seen as a core organizing principle that underlies migration’. In other words, gender not only governs migration outcomes by deciding who will receive what, but also regulates post-migration experiences in terms of extent of their freedom, autonomy and choice. Gender constitutes a pivotal aspect of migration since women’s ‘options, patterns, and obstacles’ are significantly different from men (Singh et al., 2015, p. 2), and this has been concretely witnessed in the narrative where gender has been the key factor in deciding the nature of challenging situations and alternatives women might have in exercising choices.
According to S. R. Mahapatro, migration of females is an ‘outcome of interplay of steer forces and of attractive forces’ (2010, p. 10). While economic or financial independence has been an influential factor, the dissatisfaction with societal attitudes and eagerness for opportunities enables women to take stand and fight for their independence. As, has been remarked earlier, social reluctance towards ‘single women: single mothers, unmarried women, widows or divorcees’, further prompt these women to migrate (Caritas Internationalis, n.d., p. 5). Therefore, tendencies and forms of migration do not only depend on women’s social, economic positions, availabilities of opportunities (Palriwala & Uberoi, 2008, cited in Singh et al., 2015, p. 2), but the family also plays an influential determining role (Boyd & Grieco, 2003, p. 4).
However, usage of the term ‘empowered autonomous’ for single migrant women can be controversial since these terms are often used in reference to men. Thus, they seek to challenge the existing social structure and live ‘outside of the constraints associated with conventional gender roles and norms’ (Budgeon, 2015, p. 402). Thereby, departing from their expected gendered social positions and role by being financially independent, educated and taking charge of their lives, along with having a capacity for negotiation, bargaining and facing challenges. Consequently, whether their migration will be temporary or permanent is premised upon the fulfilment of objectives in post-migration experiences (Kalani, 2016, p. 108).
Nevertheless, both economic and non-economic factors influence women to stay as migrants such as freedom, autonomy, space, liberation, better career and academic opportunities and an improved lifestyle, among others. Migration can be empowering when women get access to employment that is the ‘feminization of migration’ (Fluery, 2016, p. 4) strengthens their agency for obtaining ‘desired outcomes’ (Fluery, 2016, p. 1). Thus migration brings ‘social mobility with increased education levels, enhanced job opportunities as well as elevated wages in most of the cases’ (Eryar, 2019, p. 215). While this nature of migration on the one hand adds numerous confrontations, on the other hand it has given access to various educational, employment opportunities which have intensified their potential and offered them freedom of choice and action, consequently, their empowerment.
It is this experience of migration that gives women an opportunity of reflecting, analysing and taking a stand on what matters to them. For ‘empowerment is an ongoing process rather than a product’ (Mosedale, 2005, p. 244). As the field narratives indicate some are empowered, while others are in the process of being empowered. Each one of them has a unique migration experience which empowered them in one way or the other and has added an element of choice, autonomy and freedom in their lived realities. As Mosedale said, ‘people have more or less power depending on their specific situation and that they can be relatively powerless in one situation and relatively powerful in another’ (2005, p. 251). To put it another way, all the narratives have reflected a varied stage of empowerment based entirely on their context, salary, societal response and employment. Therefore, empowerment is a context ridden notion (Gaye & Jha, 2011, p. 51).
Further, in this study, empowerment is understood in connection with power, the ability to make choices. While those who do not have such an ability to make choices or are denied or restrained because of their context, or position, is interpreted as disempowered. But when women have acquired such an ability, it entails empowerment for them. In other words, empowerment can be taken as a consequence of change, and those who have never been disempowered cannot be taken as empowered (Kabeer, 1999, p. 2). This change is expressed in their empowerment at an economic as well as a social level when they access the resources of education and employment. On the economic front, their financial independence, which means they are neither dependent for financial needs nor accountable to anyone for their financial decisions, has been one of the key factors for avoiding any situation of control by others while at the social level they have become the regulator of their life choices and not bound by other’s control. Hence, empowerment can be located not only in the struggle of single, migrant women, but also in their negotiation and exercise of choice.
Research Methodology
In this study, the term ‘single’ refers to unmarried and divorced women who migrated to access education and employment. Delhi and Bengaluru have been selected as research sites since both the cities are known for their educational and employment opportunities. Initially, in both cities some women came first for higher education and later have stayed on for employment while others directly came for the employment. Bengaluru is one of the preferred destinations for employment as well as for pursuing higher education simultaneously. Delhi is attractive as a destination for the kind of lifestyle it offers apart from good salary package it offers to young professionally qualified persons. Bengaluru is considered safer by women as compared to Delhi. We found that in the case of Delhi, these women have some or the other from extended family members while it is mostly younger relations in Bengaluru and senior extended family members or any contacts appear to be missing.
For the study, only women who have graduated or have a post-graduation degree or have learned a professional skill and are employed in the organised sector were selected. The selected women originally belonged to Chandigarh, Meerut, Haryana, Lucknow, Rohtak, Kanpur, Bihar, Jalandhar, Dehradun Guwahati and so forth. Their educational backgrounds varied from Bachelor of Engineering, Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Technology, Master of Arts, Bachelor’s in Design, Master of Business Administration, Bachelor of Science, B.A. (Honours) Economics, Law, Social Work to Journalism. The occupations these women are employed in included the areas of software engineering, non-governmental organisations, human resource management, multinational corporation, as associate consultants, logistic associates, content associates, operation leads and language teachers among various other occupations.
The study focusses on single, middle-class women who are employed as professionals in the organised sector. Often their fathers were employed as bank managers, as private finance company managers, agricultural department scientist, civil engineer and in insurance companies. Their mothers, in case they are employed, worked as computer teachers, senior accountants, yoga instructors, Group I government employees, bank managers and so on. The parent’s occupational information, along with these women’s occupational details, place of stay in a migrant city (that is as a paying guest, own flat, shared flat, hostel or a rented place), their lifestyle (the way they spent and invested their income), all these contributed to our understanding of their socio-economic background. Notably, when we are trying to look at the gender aspect, the challenges of empowerment and disempowerment are often cross-sectional and not bound by a particular class category only. These women have faced challenges of figuring out accommodation, negotiating with a glass ceiling, competing with men for promotion, struggling to get their due recognition, some have even been sending money back to their homes while others have been receiving some money from home in case of dire need. They are managing travel, investments and lifestyle choices which might require some financial backing and their parents have been managing to provide support as and when required.
The study is primarily focussed on the lived experiential realities of single women who have been selected through snowball sampling. Close friends and acquaintances have been oriented about the objective of research and thus women were referred for the study. The criterion is that women should be between the age of 22 and 42 years, employed, earning not less than ₹25,000 per month, are graduates, and working in the organised sector. A total of 56 women have been interviewed, 28 from each city. Both a quantitative and a qualitative analysis have been done for the interpretation and analysis of the collected data and narratives.
With their consent, in-depth discussions have taken place, involving both an open- and some closed-ended questionnaires. The in-depth interview aims to draw linkages between women, migration, employment, choice, freedom and empowerment. The questionnaire covers family background, professional and educational qualifications, salary, empowering, disempowering experiences, decisions reflecting life choices and how they affect their day-to-day life. Most participants preferred to meet in a public space and not in their offices or homes. However, some were more comfortable in sharing their personal space and did not hesitate to answer questions in their homes or offices. In-depth conversations have been undertaken according to the comfort level of the respondents. For brief details of participants and associated factors, we can look at Table 1 .
Evaluating the Empowerment of Single Migrant Women
While analysing migration, it is not only economic factors (education and employment) but also non-economic factors (choice, autonomy, freedom) that govern the single woman’s migration experience. And only with the gender lens one can examine their experience which is dependent on whether they are executing or not the societal expectations of being a woman (Buberwa & Mutayoba, 2016, p. 76).
Although, reducing ‘the category of migrant as essentially affluent, prosperous and male, overlooking questions of subalternity’ has been the general tendency (Kodoth & Varghese, 2012, p. 57–58), but migration needs to be interpreted with numerous patterns and ‘occupational diversification’ (Deshingkar & Grimm, 2004, p. 6). Against this backdrop, migration cannot be perceived as a neutral term because the experiences one earns through it can be categorised in a gendered manner, specifically when we are referring to it in the context of single women. These experiences are significantly complicated involving intricacies of gender relations. However, they turn out to be empowering once women learn to negotiate with gendered challenges.
Summary of Interviewed Participants in Delhi and Bengaluru
Source: The authors.
Rhoda Lois Blumberg and Leela Dwaraki state that ‘if one is not married, she will face the rubbish comments from society’ (1980, cited in Parmar, 2018, p. 7). This is because traditional social structures and their rigid requirements of gender conduct are still governing numerous everyday challenges which often become the basis of women’s non-acceptance in society. As Praveena Kodoth argues, ‘Marriage is imperative, over-age is a condition reached only by women with “disadvantages”, in particular the lack of “healthy good looks” or sometimes a difficult horoscope’ (Kodoth, 2008, p. 264). This argument goes well in the context of the study where some women were considerably ‘over age’, as Kodoth says, and their single status has been the grounds of posing all possible questions to figure out the reason of their being unmarried. Krishna Kumari argues that problems faced by a single woman can be ‘classified in terms of the social stigma attached to them, the social restrictions imposed on them, and the social boycott or rejection society meets out to them resulting in their low social status’ (1987, cited in Parmar, 2018, p. 7). It is gender that creates an embedded way of treatment in society and invokes questions on a woman’s single status, both on their social and work front. Therefore, the phenomenon of gender inequality creates impediments in accessing beneficial outcomes of migration (Singh et al., 2015, p. 1).
Moreover, all these obstructions have become more intense when women have refused to go by their pre-prescribed social roles which are considered to be the ‘central element of successfully performed femininity’ (De Paulo & Morris, 2005; Sharp & Ganong, 2011, cited in Budgeon, 2015, p. 404) and instead assume an independent, autonomous position which is perceived as incompatible and creates situations of ‘gender accountability which requires them to develop strategies for explaining their status’ (Budgeon, 2015, p. 405).
Therefore, for evaluating the concept of empowerment for a ‘single’ woman, it is necessary to understand the notion of gender and scrutinise the process where women are able to overcome their disempowering situations. A research coordinator in Bengaluru has said, ‘Being an independent single woman is not considered a good approach by many. Some conservative people look down upon me because of my single status’.
Similarly, a respondent working in an export office in Bengaluru said,
Some people mistreat me or do not respect me because I am a divorcee. That makes me feel bad at times, but mostly it does not bother me. In my personal life, whenever I have had to deal with house brokers or owners to rent houses or buy one, it has not been a pleasant experience. Some people have tried to take advantage of me, and I have had to take help from male friends in such cases.
These expressions contribute in comprehending that choosing to be single might still constitute a ‘problem’ for women. Questions about the hows and whys relating to their single status, either directly or indirectly, point towards a general non-acceptance. As West and Zimmerman argue, gender is accomplished when we act according to socially desired expectations (1987 & 2009, cited in Budgeon, 2015, p. 409) and when it is not performed it results in retaliation against the ‘self-sufficient, self-governing, sexually unbound femininity’ (Budgeon, 2015, p. 409) which is the outcome of women’s access to resources and exertion of her agency. Consequently, while there is a steady increase in the number of single women moving towards big cities in search of employment opportunities, the challenges
which they deal with relentlessly and simultaneously amplify.
A senior-level executive in Delhi, speaking on the challenge of the glass ceiling, said, ‘There is preferential gendered treatment on the work front. I still have hurdles in my progress which come in my way as a woman before my capability as a person’. Another woman working as a journalist in Delhi said, ‘I worked for News 9 where people started saying that because I am a north Indian I got a promotion; they ignored the fact that I worked hard for it’.
Glass ceiling is one of the most pertinent issues faced by numerous women, but somehow it is more evident when we refer to it in the context of single, migrant women whose exercise of autonomy is perceived as being inconsistent with existing social structures. In such a gendered perception, perceiving women being at par with men, competing on equal terms, is equally challenging as is accepting women more competent than their male colleagues. Nevertheless, despite these challenges, women have been taking a stand at work, achieving promotions, defying all gendered judgements and fighting for their due share. It is the result of their confidence and their talent (because of their higher education levels and sense of self-independence) that they are being promoted and showcasing their presence, in spite of there being instances when their hard work is undermined. An independent HR consultancy holder in Bengaluru said,
So far they has not been much [bias] except for two of my clients who have taken me for a ride, thinking I am a single woman. But I have stuck to my stand and have been successful in getting my payments through an out- of-court settlement. When I went to register an FIR, the police had a judgemental approach towards me, but later the client himself came forward when he realised that I was not afraid of taking him to court. So these kind of issues are there in case you are a single woman. People take you for a ride because they think you are helpless.
The statement perceiving women as ‘helpless’ because of their single status or being without a man is considered to be a license for treating women as ‘weak’. But in situations where women strongly assert themselves, it setbacks the conventional notion of women’s dependency on men. The courage of taking male clients to court or to reporting them to a police station is in itself an outcome of their access to resources and their financial independence which has given them the strength to demand their dues. Therefore, in such a context, it is essential to understand the functioning of gender relations to evaluate their impact on a women’s exertion of agency.
Further, safety is a crucial concern as a respondent working at a women organisation in Bengaluru shared:
Now, I am single with two children. We all are women in the household and moneylenders knock at our door, every now and then, and it is unsafe. We are troubled by the possibility that someday some men may break the door and harm us. I go to church and pray every day for mental strength.
Such instances highlight a lack of gender sensitivity and reluctance in respecting a woman’s choice and decision to live as an independent person.
A woman working as an editor in a publication company in Delhi said,
It is about the fairness and respect that we deserve. Everyone should be given an equal opportunity to make choices. I have earned it, I feel it every day, and it does cost me. I have been labelled as a feminist. It is all about overcoming your fears. It is building your own power.
The statement, ‘it does cost me’, conveys the price of being single, autonomous women charged in terms of judgements, discriminations and harassment. However, their exertion of choice and agency manifest their empowerment, as the respondent stated, it was all about ‘overcoming your fear and building power’.
A journalist in Delhi said, ‘safety is 10 per cent of disempowerment, while 90 per cent I am empowered which I have achieved through my education and economic independence’. Access to education and economic independence grants them 90 per cent empowerment. Safety concerns, which are basically due to gender insensitivity and discrimination, bring 10 per cent of disempowerment. Even if we look in terms of ratio, empowerment attained through resources is much higher than the disempowering experience brought about by safety and gender issues. This statement shows that when women gain resources, they overpower gendered challenges, and turn their disempowering challenges into empowering ones.
Besides this, these challenges remind us of the way gender power operates in the society. Power suffuses ‘through the differentiated values, norms and perceived possibilities that accrue to different social groups by virtue of their positioning within the social hierarchy’ (Kabeer, 1999, p. 7). However, migration does grant them an opportunity to move out of their subjugated social position. So, while living alone and dealing with new people is a challenging task for these women, simultaneously, it has given them the confidence to be on their own.
A woman working as a manager in Delhi said, ‘My parents have educated me like my brother, so it has helped me to be independent. I am lucky that I have family support’.
As this narrative indicates, both parents are supportive of their daughters. In terms of financial help, both are ready to provide. However, in terms of comfort while discussing problems, it seems that the mothers are approached first because very often fathers generally asked to come back when their daughters face any problem while it is their mothers who try to work out a solution. This can also be interpreted in a sense that women often have the experience and skill of negotiating new places or people, whether it is the home or public spaces, which helps their daughters sort out their challenges too. Moreover, it is gendered social norms that decide how women can experience a new city, where they are first seen as women and second as single and treated accordingly.
One of the respondents working in an IT company in Bengaluru said,
My life has always been a constant struggle, being powerless in one phase and regaining power in the next phase. Men come with this advantage, they can do whatever they wish to, and no one questions them about their choices, but in the case of a woman, everyone does. Auto drivers treat you differently, waiters in hotels ask the man first what food is to be ordered and not the woman, despite the fact it is the woman who is paying the bill: these are embedded ways of treating women in society.
The statement, ‘being powerless and regaining power’, depicts the cycle of negotiation women go through. As long as this cycle persists these women are in the process of empowerment. Further, the statement ‘no one questions men about their choices’ shows that choice is taken as a domain of men and women are asked to provide justifications when they do not act as per the requirements of the existing societal structures and practice ‘non-conformity’ (Budgeon, 2015, p. 405). Yet despite this, women choose to go ahead by struggling, negotiating, bargaining, compromising or fighting and convert their disempowering situations into empowering moments.
Furthermore, marriage has always turned out to be a crucial decision and is perceived as an unequal equation governed by gendered norms. However, these women are vocal and firm enough to put forward their stand on the kind of relationship they look forward to and are ready to take a stand for it. A respondent working in the account’s section of an office in Delhi said, ‘I do not like the traditional marriage system which gives all the power to men. I expect equality in marriage. My husband should be able to understand that marriage should be beneficial to both’. A respondent working in a tourism-related NGO in Bengaluru said, ‘I think marriage is totally a patriarchal concept for the ease of the man. I will not marry under the pressure of society, but only when I want and where I will have a space for myself and my decisions’.
The narratives indicate how far choice, autonomy and freedom are crucial elements for them. Being financially independent, qualified with higher education, women are in position to choose whether they want to opt for marriage or not and, if so, then what kind of partner they will be looking forward to. These women are changing equations and positions; turning a socially mandatory phenomenon into an optional or choice-based relationship by deciding the nature and kind of relationship they might want to engage in. Besides, they look for notions of freedom, equality, space, autonomy and choice in a marriage and believe that it should benefit both partners; this reflects the autonomous position they have achieved so far in their life. It is this achievement of autonomy and empowerment which they are now not ready to risk for marriage.
Apart from these dimensions, if we look at the clothing and lifestyle these women have adopted, we see echoes of their independence in decision- and choice making. As far as the choice of clothing is concerned, nearly 53 per cent of the women respondents in Bengaluru wear traditional clothing. Whereas nearly 78 per cent women preferred Western dresses. Nearly 17 per cent women said they prefer wearing sarees as it gives them a sense of authority while dealing with their clients. About 7 per cent choose to dress according to the occasion while approximately 39 per cent said that they prefer any type of attire and rely on their confidence to be taken seriously at their workplace. In the case of Delhi, nearly 40 per cent of women said that there is no difference in the type of attire they wear in Delhi and their hometowns. Nearly 88 per cent opt for both Western and ethnic clothes. Only 7 per cent, preferred a saree as a dress of influence and about 7 per cent said that they wear a dress to make them look good. Hence, dressing which had always been considered as means of controlling a woman’s sexuality is now being freely governed by women themselves. Further, around 60 per cent women said they preferred to shop from malls while the rest say they choose to go to the market or mall depending on their budget and needs. Nearly 14 per cent respondents seem to prefer online shopping as it saved time and was convenient. All this showed us how these women spend their income and act according to their own preferences.
Coming to accommodation, nearly 70 per cent women said that they had have no time-restrictions imposed on them by anyone in Bengaluru or in Delhi, except for the 29 per cent who were staying in paying guest accommodation in the two cities. Those who choose to live in independent flats do so to avoid any sort of restrictions on their movements or on their visitors, especially of men, at any point of time during the day. In other words, they opt for a certain accommodation based on the kind of lifestyle they prefer. Their outings involve mostly going to the mall, watching movies, attending parties, eating out or visiting clubs, and all this is done mostly during weekends. Nearly 18 per cent of women who travelled have gone on solo personal trips. Weekends and short trips with friends, including men, have been taken by nearly 80 per cent of the women. None of these women have sought permission from their parents for these travels, though they did inform them. Nearly 42 per cent women travel for work and do not seek permission from home to do so. Thus, their outings and trips indicate the nature of freedom, autonomy and choices they are exercising in a migrant city.
On being empowered, a respondent working at the Supreme Court under a lawyer in Delhi, shared, ‘Being independent to take your decisions is empowering to me. Because I am able to live on my own terms and not depend on anyone for my survival, that self-made feeling empowered me’. A respondent working in Bengaluru as an executive manager at IT company said,
I am free to make decisions on day-to-day matters and as well as on major matters of my life. I do not have to explain to anyone, I can pursue my dreams; no one is there to stop me from doing that. I can travel the world too; so these are the ways I feel empowered.
These narratives show a belief that these women simply do not owe an explanation to anyone; their financial independence means living life on their terms, taking decisions freely, choosing what to do in life—all manifestations of choice, autonomy and freedom—therefore depicting their empowerment as a free and equal individual. However, accountability has always been part of a female’s expected role performance, but when they acquire the sense of independence (with financial independence and education), they are no longer accountable to anyone for their actions, they take autonomous decisions and are free to govern their affairs.
In conventional societies, social gender norms can restrict women’s mobility and agency (Fluery, 2016, p. 22), but with their migration and access to resources, choice and agency, they have brought in a change to their lives. While earlier they were bound by some restrictions, but now they have witnessed a change in the attitude of their parents. With improved mutual understanding and equations, especially when parents see their daughters performing well and achieving success, a realisation has dawned that giving freedom to these young ladies has caused no harm. In this way, familial equations have improved and horizons expanded. However, for some women, their migrant destination has become their home where they are building their careers and future prospects. It is this change which exhibits the empowerment of women.
Inferences of the Study
In this study, an understanding of the empowerment of single women has been attempted through Kabeer’s framework of agency, achievement and resources. The resources available to women have been interpreted in terms of their access to education, employment, along with the social circle which they have been able to build in a migrant city and support themselves to survive on their own. Similarly, their agency has been analysed in terms of women’s exercise of choice whether it is regarding their lifestyle, workplace, marriage choice, their social circle or autonomous decision-making. Freedom is another significant sphere where they have struggled to express themselves as being free and equal individuals despite all challenges of gendered social norms or glass ceiling, among others. As Kabeer has said, those who had been disempowered can be empowered (Kabeer, 1999, p. 2), and these women turn their disempowering situation into one of empowerment by dealing with it through negotiation, bargaining or resistance.
Besides, education and employment have always been one of the goals of the feminist movements and considered to be the source of women’s empowerment. In other words, the space where women have always expected to live with submissiveness and subjugation changes with these advantages. These two instruments in the very same place have the potential of accomplishing the status of an independent, autonomous and free individual who is not only exerting her choices, but also creating equal space and opportunities.
On the basis of the narratives, it can be argued that gender is a prominent factor in affecting the lived experiential realities of these women and the prime cause of all their concerns, harassment, bias, discrimination, challenges and struggles. Gender influenced their migration experience because of which they are first seen as women, then as employees with potential, individuals who chose to be single, with their own preferences in terms of lifestyle and career choices.
However, their access to resources, choices and alternatives has enabled them to move out of the dependency, which is considered as being part of feminine identity. At the same time, this autonomous existence is one of the root causes of vengeance by society as some respondents have had to take the help of male friends while searching for accommodation because either they were on the verge of being exploited or are being denied accommodation because of their single or divorced status.
Yet it is their access to education and employment that has enhanced their social and economic position. Economic empowerment by being financially independent (that is, neither dependent nor accountable for financial matters) has proved to be a foundational support because it has boosted their confidence and given them strength to face a biased society on their own. Financial independence is one of the major supporters of women’s empowerment, it has given them strength to move in or move out of a place because they know they can take care of themselves and survive. The respondents are not accountable to anyone for explaining how they have spent their money or where they have invested. Besides this, education too has turned out to be one of the main pillars of strength as it has provided enough opportunities of working in the organised sector which gave them decent standards of pay.
Further, an empowerment has been seen in the exercise of choice when women have chosen to quit unsuitable jobs or have made a choice of how they dressed, reflecting their achievement of challenging gendered inequalities. Migration has offered them the opportunity to avail their space, take decisions independently and utilise opportunities for fulfilling their professional and educational ambitions, thereby inspiring the confidence for leading an unchained life. In this manner, we can say, education and employment are tools for liberation that have provided women the opportunity to be empowered and is expressed in their exercise of choice, autonomous decision-making and freedom to be on their own.
Conclusion
As Hugo has stated, the ‘context and type’ of migration has played a pivotal role in determining whether migration can be empowering or not (Gaye & Jha, 2011, p. 50). The nature of single women migration matters because its consequences have brought about dramatic transformative changes into the lives of women. Along with this, the place of migration also plays an important role, since it defines the kind of opportunities and options available. In this study, two cities, Delhi and Bengaluru, were taken as research sites which have offered their own experiences to these women.
In the case of Delhi, it has granted ample scope for exercising one’s choice and autonomy, but at the same time the horizon of freedom has been restrained by gendered discriminations, security concerns, social biased norms and workplace gendered treatment, among other issues. Women have had opportunities, but they were bound by gender traps. Similarly, they have exercised their choices, made autonomous decisions and attempted to live as free individuals, but all these options have come with numerous security and gendered challenges. In Bengaluru, women felt free to roam around, travel late at night, found accommodations and exerted their choice. The place and nature of migration make a tremendous impact on their exercise of choice, autonomy and freedom. Therefore, the context has a deterministic impact on their empowerment. Consequently, each woman has been experiencing empowerment at her own pace in both the cities. Therefore, it can be argued that since migration has proved to be an empowering experience it is essential to make our cities safe and develop their infrastructure to make it gender-friendly so that it can offer opportunities of growth, alternatives in exercising choice and a scope of exerting oneself, thus contributing to challenging unequal gendered norms.
Both economic factors (education and employment) and non-economic factors (freedom, liberation, autonomy and choice) play a significant role in governing their post-migration lived realities and decisions of staying as a migrant. As and when women have had the opportunity of migrating for their own upliftment to a space or a place where they could access resources, such as potential employment opportunities, pursue higher education or make use of their education in getting better employment prospects, the chance of enhancing a social circle which can act as a support system in a new city and not be the cause of their dependency, they attain the strength of exerting their agency whether it is in terms of a workplace decision, accommodation or lifestyle choices among others, they achieved empowerment when they have earned the strength of fighting, resisting, bargaining and negotiating for their rights and justice whether it is at a workplace or the societal front.
Migration, employment and education, all the three elements have the potential of bringing change. While migration allows a movement towards better life prospects, education, with employment gives the opportunity of turning their gender-biased, disempowering challenges into an empowering situation.
With employment (financial independence) and education as crucial tools women have been able to exert their agency, that is, exercise their choices by making autonomous decisions. A change which is reflected when they moved away from their socially expected roles to one that is independently taking charge of their lives. It can be concluded that when a woman opts for migration as an independent individual for accessing education and employment, which are considered influential sources of liberation, women experience empowerment which manifests itself in their exercise of choice, autonomy and freedom in a new city. This essence of empowerment and change can only be evaluated by interrogating the gendered essence of migration, with a more extensive examination of interlinkages between gender, migration and empowerment.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, or publication of this article.
Funding
This research received funds from Indian Council of Social Science Research for conducting a research project titled, ‘The Politics of Autonomous Migration: An Assessment of Empowerment of Indian Middle-Class Women’ and this article has been the outcome of that project.