Why women around the world are posting pictures on social media with their legs spread open?

What is the difference between the two? Photo Courtesy: Instagram

A few months ago, social media was flooded with pictures and posts on 'manspreading.' And if you are active user of Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram--you would have probably come across it and the criticism surrounding the practice. But, in case you don't know what it means, allow us to enlighten you a little. Manspreading, or man-sitting, is basically the practice of men sitting in public transport with legs wide apart, thereby covering more than one seat. Now, this wasn't a topic of debate till a few years ago. After all, men have been sitting the way they want since time immemorial. No one goes up to men and teaches them to sit with their legs closed. It is women who are told to cross their legs and sit elegantly because--well--open legs invite a lot of unwanted attention. But, to challenge this norm, now women around the world are posting pictures on Instagram, while sitting with their legs apart. And the trend has been dubbed as 'womanspreading.'

 

A post shared by Grace Xu (@amazingishgrace) on Sep 14, 2017 at 5:59pm PDT

Some have called this pose a 'power stance.' According to a report published in The Sun, "The pose is designed to empower women, as it bucks the tradition of sitting poised with your knees together. It's also a response to 'manspreading.' The stance is usually considered by many to be unladylike but these women are unfazed." Leading this new trend are some of the most famous faces in the world such as Bella Hadid, Kylie Jenner, Jennifer Lopez, Kim Kardashian, Angel Elsa Hosk, and many more.

 

A post shared by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Jul 27, 2017 at 6:18pm PDT

 

A post shared by Jennifer Lopez (@jlo) on Sep 15, 2017 at 5:08pm PDT

 

A post shared by Kylie (@kyliejenner) on Aug 2, 2017 at 3:31pm PDT

 

A post shared by Bella Hadid (@bellahadid) on Nov 8, 2017 at 8:42pm PST

For years, men sitting with their legs wide open was never frowned upon, but women doing the same was termed vulgar. Interestingly, the coin has flipped. While 'manspreading' is dubbed as offensive, 'womanspreading' is being hailed. In fact, earlier this year, men in Madrid, Spain, were prohibited from sitting with their legs wide open aboard public transport. Of course, there was a valid reason behind it. "Prohibition of taking a seating position that bothers other people. It's to remind transport users to maintain civic responsibility and respect the personal space of everyone on board," the city's Municipal Transportation Company had stated.

Moreover, women in Madrid had been campaigning against 'manspreading' for months and a group called 'Mujeres en Lucha' had started a petition #MadridSinManspreading, earlier this year. After the campaign gained momentum, the members of the group had met up Madrid's Mayor and Regional President to put forth their request. They explained that women felt uncomfortable while travelling and were forced to sit with their legs tight shut. The authorities paid heed to the woes of women commuters and 'manspreading' was banned in Madrid

La @EMTmadrid añade una nueva señal a bordo del bus para evitar el #manspreading: "Respeta el espacio de los demás". https://t.co/Xg5LFWb4TA pic.twitter.com/KSyeU45gAi

— Ayuntamiento Madrid (@MADRID) June 6, 2017

And now, we have women doing the same. Although, it's imperative to note that trends which promise to empower women, should not lose their purpose and turn into an inconvenience to anyone. And by that we mean women taking up extra space on public transport in the name if empowerment. So, till the time this trends acts as norm-buster only--all is good. Also, if 'womanspreading' catches on, women around the world can relax, loosen up a little, and sit however they want without being judged or criticized.