Society and Human Rights: ‘Can’t We Be Entitled To Being The Truest Versions Of Ourselves?’ by Sola Soyele.

Introduction
I was there when an older man was scolding a young boy of about 10 years old. ‘Stop talking like a lady, speak like a man! You are a man.’ Apparently, the young boy had a natural high-pitched voice. The little boy reclined in a chair in class one afternoon. He began to reflect on how his friends had bullied him, ‘…see the way you talk like a woman. Are you not a man?’. He surely remembered his Uncle telling him that day, ‘Ben, you are a man, and you should talk like a man. Now, talk like a man.’ He seemed to have heard the seemingly embarrassing statement on how to talk like a man a million times.

Now, I heard someone say, ‘He chose to be moved by what people say.’ Truth is: we aren’t all graced to have good self-esteem; we do not all grow up with very rigid minds; and in fact, Ben was just a ten-year-old, imagine it. You know, when you remind a child ‘negatively’ about their seeming weakness like, ‘You are so slow; you can never be fast enough to catch a snail; idiot,’ what you do is that you teach them to consistently focus on their flaws so much that over time, they get so magnified that they affect the child’s life tremendously. Ben, that young boy was me. I must confess, it contributed to my low self-value when I was much younger. It’s easy for you to talk the way you do, but then, I must learn to undergo the stress of imitating you for the rest of my life. What selfishness. I hope I don’t sound like an angry young man who wants to fight for his right, do I? Smiles. Good news, I sing quite well now, and many people appreciate every sound I utter.

The Talk
There I stood by the roadside, waiting to board a bus when I heard a rash young man laugh openly at a very small woman. ‘This one is so short!’ he exclaimed in a ridiculous manner. She probably heard but decided to be the wise person and let him make a fool of himself. He laughed and was not apologetic at all. Now if she were a particularly dark-skinned lady with an especially low self-worth, upon hearing how people mock her colour, she could decide to add some tones to her skin by bleaching. If at all a person would bleach their beautiful skin, should it be consequent on the bad talks of people or out of free will? Or, let’s explore more. If she were a naturally ‘plump’ school girl, also with a self-loathing mindset, should she then starve herself painfully just to stop people who don’t deserve her from mocking her body size?

I adamantly believe that every normal and reasonable person should at least learn how to talk, how to make polite corrections, and how to employ some wisdom in their relationships with others. There are many different seeming weaknesses that many people may have, some can be improved on, some cannot; some can be encouraged nonetheless, some are not even bad at all and they need no iota of encouragement –like an amazing shade of melanin. As if an undersized person can just decide to be tall one day. What is the GOOD point in emphasizing people’s weaknesses especially when they can’t be amended or changed? Wisdom.

Conclusion
When we sincerely highlight the weaknesses of others, let’s do it wisely, and let’s not forget to mention their strengths too, so that it doesn’t seem like their strengths are not visible but their flaws are. If the first thing you always see in a person is their flaw, make it a duty to humanity to always remember to mention some of their beauties too. We can all live better lives. Please, can’t we all be entitled to being the truest versions of ourselves? I need your replies. The world needs your replies. Thanks.

PS: In every relationship, allowing your companion to be their truest selves is one of the most humane gifts to give them. Let us emphasize our humanity and humanness. Short or tall, whatever the flaw or strength, we all are humans. Thanks.
This is dedicated to everyone whose experiences have been mentioned here.

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