Page 71 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 22

Leadership

Unless we are all willing to give up our collective, past and present,
our labels, the struggle for freedom negligence of humanity. We have
amounts only to exchanging roles – forgotten the precariousness of life
Who plays oppressor and who plays for all of the human race. We unite
oppressed? Who would dehumanize to separate, and dehumanize one
and whom? In reality, both oppres- another by creating identity labels.
sor and oppressed are dehumanized. But our salvation lies in the grand
The oppressor is dehumanized by recognition of our interconnected-
belonging to a collective identity of ness and in our collective fate.
the superior group. The oppressed Grand conceptions of nationality,
too is trapped in the inferior group. religion, and ideologies have united
Amy Chua describes how individ- millions of people, but the same
uals bound their identity to group concepts have kept even more
even at their own peril, and remarks, people outside. I fail to understand
“They will penalize outsiders, our failure in imagining the grandest
seemingly gratuitously. They will notion that is abundant enough to
sacrifice, and even kill and die, for accommodate all humans, or at least
their groups.” Both oppressed and one that does not need distinction
oppressor respond as crowd, both to define itself. Put in simpler terms,
have been dehumanized by losing a grand social identity (1) must be
their individuality. accessible to all of humanity, and (2)
must have a definition that describes
The Path Towards Humanity it without comparing and contrast-
If we are to build a world commu- ing itself to other social identities.
nity to the human race, we must
first shake off the socially imposed Me and you are our religions, races,
and personally sanctioned veil of our ideologies, our nationalities, or
arrogance. Our perennial separation other affiliations; but we are also
feeds on ignorance. It begins with more than each and all identity
the look of bewilderment in the labels. James Baldwin in Notes of
rudely innocent faces who mocking- a Native Son, explains, “But our
ly look at an unfamiliar face, or who humanity is our burden, our life; we
tease an unfamiliar name. It is evi- need not battle for it; we need only
dent in that shockingly impersonal, to do what is infinitely more diffi-
and indifferent comment about peo- cult—that is, accept it.” We are our
ple: They all look alike! In a grand label(s) with or without consent, but
scale, it is evident in the European there is a creative and constantly al-
arrogance that begot ‘white’ and tering humanity in us. When we see
‘black’ races out of skin pigment. beyond labels, we discover beauty in
Human history loudly speaks of fellow human beings.

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