Standing Up For Yourself Is An Underappreciated Art

[dropcap]W[/dropcap]e, being functional members of society, have an obligation to interact with other people in order to get any form of work done. It’s inevitable. We need to create a series of moments shared between one another in order for that interaction to play out.

In some instances, it’s a simple exchange with standard conditions as if you were to go to the groceries and purchase milk, you have a standard price to pay and then you pay that price and you’re off with that carton of milk.

In other cases however, like those with moral standings do, it’s much harder to undergo a transaction with minimum casualties. Like you’re drowning and you have to choose between talking and sinking or keeping shut and staying afloat.

It’s never easy to put your opinion forth even if you are extroverted in nature because there will always be a scenario that isn’t favorable in your odds. The world keeps expanding and reinventing itself constantly. There is always a new item on the market and an idea being tested. In  rder for mankind to evolve, there needs to be an element of doubts and questions. All of the greatest minds put forth in history, however good or bad their outcomes might have been, all put forth ideas that questioned or paved doubt to rules that might have been set in stone.

Take independence of culture and color. Rosa Parks is as good as any example. She is known today as the “mother of the civil rights movement” because her arrest for refusing to give up her bus seat sparked the pivotal Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott. She was oppressed under a law that people of color were only permitted to sit in one sector of the bus, But she stood up for herself and has paved way for so much of the equality we’ve striven for over the years. She never intended to start a revolution. It was just a matter of her wanting to stand up for her rights. Integrity is as powerful as any weapon out there because while weapons instigate fear, integrity births a movement.

“I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear.

The only tired I was, was tired of giving in. – Rosa Parks”

Another example of power by speech and action would be Stefani Joanne Germanotta or commonly known by her stage name, Lady Gaga. She speaks about her battles with PTSD after she was raped at the age of 19. She takes every opportunity she is given to highlight the struggles men and women go through everyday with the burdens of being a rape victim. The threat and possibility of the matter is a topic she is never known to stand down for and so, has sparked rape victims to come forth on their horrific experiences and seek help. She seized her opportunities and although it may not be a favored topic among a lot of people in the industry due to the topic being taboo in nature, she took the risk to address it. That too, not only to a variety of magazines, but also during the 2016 Emmy’s when she bought out rape survivors to the Emmy stage while she performed her song ‘Till It Happens To You’.

“My own trauma in my own life has helped me to understand the trauma of others.” – Lady Gaga

Troye Sivan, famous for his videos on Youtube and even more so his recent album released ‘Blue Neighbourhood’. He speaks up for the rights for all men and women to be able to love who they love, regardless of gender. He not only embeds his beliefs and views on several of his songs on his album, he also openly discusses it on air and on interviews. His acceptance of who he is has made not only his fans more comfortable with their sexuality and their sexual preference, he has also touched the hearts of supporters and members alike of the LGBTQ+ community.

“And now on August 7th, 2013, I want you guys to know that I’m gay.

It feels kind of weird to have to announce it like this on the internet, but I feel like a lot of you guys are like real genuine friends of mine and I share everything with the internet.

I share every aspect of my life with the internet and whether or not that’s a good thing, I don’t know, but this is not something that I’m ashamed of and this it’s not something anyone should have to be ashamed of.” – Troye Sivan

See the thing is, regardless of your stature or the background you come from, you are your own person. You affect the world just as much as the next guy. Everyone is a pinprick in this blueprint of a world and we all contribute in some way or the other. One small act can make a big difference regardless of if it’s a Youtube video or a post made online or even something as simple as defending someone that may need help. Everyone is going through something and although you might now be able to help them all the way, your part could vary from listening to offering advice. Even just sharing the silence in the absence of words is enough. Something as simple as support, even if it’s just one voice in a sea of millions makes a big difference.

Never be afraid to speak your mind, but remember to do it in the appropriate way.

Never be afraid to stand up for what you believe in. Let yourself wear a lipstick color the shade of cranberries in the dark and never think for a second that it’s too bold. No shade of lipstick can ever level with the fierceness of your soul.

Never be afraid to love and be passionate about something. It doesn’t matter if it’s a person or people. Nor does it matter if it’s a book or a movie or a painting. You are entitled to your feelings.

Never forget that you are valued and that however small your role may be, you are the fabric that knits together the tapestry of humanity.

Don’t let anyone snuff the embers that ignite the aspects of you that make you, you.