In celebration of International Women’s Day, First Lady Monica Geingos took to social media to reminisce on gender insults she has been subjected to, ranging from gold-digging, being called fat or ugly, slut-shamed, too ambitious, and so decided she will not be silenced anymore, especially not on Beyoncé's internet.
These are misogynist rules which are used to shame women and which the first lady was and still keeps on being abused by.
In a post loaded on Facebook and Twitter, Geingos said if she is not getting those hurls, she is constantly being told to shut up, people enquiring when she will be impregnated, to go back to the kitchen and the constant reminder that she is an empty-headed and a bad example to adolescent girls.
The 9:30 clip raked in more than 1 300 views on Facebook within 24 hours and about 19 000 views on Twitter with the majority of social media users commenting on the first lady for stating the obvious and others continuing with the usual insults towards her.
“When I am not being a manipulative, deceitful gold digger, I am busy running the country as I have bewitched my old sugar daddy husband who is too blind to see through my feminine charms. Our marriage is arranged. A loveless union bound together by political ambition and greed. A business transition is what a former politician called my marriage,” expressed Geingos.
She stated that those gender insults are not only hurled by men but women as well. “A few women are happy to participate, after all, women can also be patriarchal,” she echoed.
Geingos said she first decided not to address such hurls but then decided otherwise. “I ignored them and that was a mistake, your silence will not protect you. The insults got worse, the lies they were willing to tell becoming increasingly outrageous,” she recalled.
She ignited that her silence did not protect her and things got worse when her loved ones were targeted, hence she appreciated the theme for this year’s International Women’ Day which is Choose to Challenge.
“I recently instituted a defamation lawsuit against this type of behaviour as I decided enough is enough. An interesting thing happens when you stand up for yourself and when you challenge,” said Geingos.– psiririka@nepc.com.na