When I was in school, naturally when a group of friends were excluding other children from playing in a particular game or activity, my teachers‘ simple and very basic reaction would be “hey, why don’t you make your own game?” and then proceed to break up the exclusion without alienating the idea of playing in groups. My teacher made me understand that there is nothing wrong with having a group to play with that allows you to be yourself; it’s only a problem if your actions hurt others.
Fast forward to 2016, we were living in a world of overly sensitive, easily offended keyboard warriors AKA our generation.
I read an article this morning about black people not being acknowledged at the Brit awards, meaning there is a lack of diversity. It’s a smart way of saying “we need your validation to tell us that we matter.”
Where I work, I have to help people on a day to day basis, (this is very important) whilst I’m typing away at my computer. I can see that someone is in front of me; I don’t have to turn my head or even speak to to know this, and almost 60% of the time, people always say “I’m waiting, can’t you see me here?”
Even with my eyes closed I can see.But what I’m presently doing has to be done before I acknowledge you formally and engage in conversation.
My point here is that whether I acknowledge you or not, it doesn’t mean you are not there.
You are there, because logically, you exist. No one can dispute that, even on camera it would show that you are standing there, at 1:45pm, for your appointment so I can’t then turn around and pretend I didn’t see you.
Going back to black people in the media, it’s simple – to say we aren’t being acknowledged is invalid, we are but just not in the way we would like to be.
It’s a hard pill to swallow, but in some situations, people know you exist but they can’t directly say “I don’t care about you .” Instead, they’ll go through it by showcasing what they want and then apologising when you notice and are offended or feel left out.
We know how much money goes into products and award shows, do you think someone missed us out by chance? There’s not enough hashtags, marching, Twitter discussions, Maya Angelou quotes, Beyoncé concerts, charity events or apologies in the world that could make us feel equal or complete .
Without mattering to ourselves, in the same fierce way that they matter to themselves, we will have to accept and acknowledge that we will not be seen as “good enough” until we do so.
If we don’t matter to ourselves, or even love ourselves, how can we expect others to do so first?
The moral of the story here is that we must first celebrate our own in order to be celebrated by others.
Image: PouiSVGDesigns
By Ola Dania
NOA World Entertainment 