(Warning: Contains satire. Do not take this too seriously.)
Nowadays, everyone’s somewhere along the personal binary. Race, class, gender, sexuality and so many more are quick ways of classifying people into majorities and minorities. And while it’s no secret that minorities typically have it harder in America, there’s one minority that remains constantly overlooked. Though its struggles do not contain major bullying or legal discrimination, the left-handed community faces continuous disadvantages in a right-handed world. Below are just a few of their many struggles in a society with such deeply-rooted hand dominance prejudices.
1. Spiral Notebooks and Binders
Every time a lefty tries to start a clean sheet of notes, a half-dozen springs dig into their wrist. Spiral notebooks are a quick way to spot a lefty’s notes in a crowd, as they somehow manage to go from messy to much neater as they move down the line.
2. Athletic Equipment
When it comes to sports, lefties do not have the option of simply borrowing somebody else’s equipment. They have to search and scour--often through a horrifyingly narrow selection--in the hopes of piecing together a decent collection of athletic accessories. From baseball gloves to golf clubs, being active has never been so difficult as it is when you’re left-handed.
3. Scissors
There’s always a 50/50 chance that the scissors will actually work for you, and if not, then your Christmas gifts always look like they’ve been wrapped by a three-year-old.
4. The left-handed stigma
I have legitimately been laughed at because people saw me writing. Something about me completing simple tasks with a different hand amuses them, and I personally do not feel the need to be objectified. We are not here for your entertainment. We did not choose this life. We are just trying to make it through, just like you.
5. Ink smudges on your hand
Since the right-handed majority has decided that we will all write left to right, us lefties have to suffer as our hand drags through what we’ve just written. It can smudge some of the most beautiful things we’ll ever write and ruin the sides of our hands, staining the skin with ink and graphite.
6. Some desks are even right-handed
They’re impossible to write on, and you have to hunt down a left-handed desk for longer than you probably should have to. It makes learning incredibly difficult to do.
7. You can’t sit on the right of a right-handed person without potentially doing them serious harm.
On behalf of the left-handed community, I would like to formally apologize to any right-handed people that have to sit on our left while we’re writing. I wish we didn’t have to elbow you constantly, but unfortunately, sometimes it’s out of our control. We’re just people, after all.
Lefty. Southpaw. Human. These are some of the words used to describe a group of people that have been condemned by society because of how they were born. With approximately 10% of the population being part of this group, it’s hard to believe that people would be discriminated against because of their hand dominance. But yet, as I have shown, the struggle is still real for those with unfavorable predisposition towards a certain hand. Therefore, we as lefties must stand together and fight for our rights. Draw attention towards the objects designed for righties, towards the trends that favor the majority. As a community, we have come a long way from being accused of witchcraft several centuries ago, but there is still much work to be done. Keep fighting, fellow lefties. One day, we will be treated as equals.
