Every day, we are presented with the opportunity to express our opinions and let our voices be heard in a country that is built on the principles of free speech and press.
Yet every day, more and more people continue to let their voices be shadowed and drowned by a voice that overpowers what they are trying to say. This overpowering and controlling voice can take many different forms, in the form of a parent, a person of higher authority, the list goes on.
But why do some people let their voices be expressed as others' opinions? We live in the land of the free.
At the end of the day, if we are not expressing our opinions, we don't have a say in what we learn and how we can change. We have to be outspoken in places where we see injustice or something that we as people should not believe in. My parents have always told me to be outspoken in places where something doesn't fit right or triggers emotions of anger or fear. For example, I participated in a rally for gun control laws to channel my beliefs into something which could potentially bring change.
In a recent poll taken by the Huffington Post, it turns out that the reason people let others walk over them is that they want to be accepted by those around them. If you neglect yourself, then you are stifling your voice from helping to create the change you want to see. You may fear of coming across as needy, but this is no reason not to talk to anyone. Why let someone's personal opinion of you affect how you talk with others? At the end of the day, your opinion matters just as much as anyone else's. We should not sacrifice our self-respect to look more approachable.
My solution for a change is simple: encourage everyone to express their own opinions. Our job as people is to fight for our beliefs, even if they seem to put us at odds with others.
In the NFL, quarterback Colin Kaepernick partnered up with Nike to create a whole advertisement line about standing up for what you believe in. The NFL blacklisted Kapernick due to his reluctance to stand up during the national anthem. Instead of taking what the NFL gave him, the quarterback went against one of the biggest organizations in the world and continued to protest the flag. This makes him a hero to people like myself who wanted to see change in our world. Colin Kapernick is the best example of how you should take the opportunity given to you and not let anyone stop you.
In a much darker and more recent example is the confirmation hearing of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Even many of the people who voted for him know that he should not have been voted into the opening on the Supreme court. Dr. Christine Blasey-Ford was the woman who came out against this horrible human and stood up for her beliefs that someone like Kavanaugh should not be on our Supreme Court panel.
Despite Kavanaugh's confirmation onto the supreme court, some positives can still be taken from this. Ford has set the precedent for other women to stand up to men who might have abused them or sexually assaulted them in the past. She has made it harder for these crimes to go unforgiven and men will now be held to a higher standard when being considered for positions on this court. This empowers women to not let something just stick to the past, it allows them to speak the truth.
This is a direct example of how we as people can cause change. It is simply a matter of standing up for something.
At the end of the day, words can only go so far to influence change in others. We need to focus on how to let others around us express themselves in the best ways possible so that we don't drown out their opinions. This would help create a more diverse culture in which people understand each other. We never really know what good ideas someone might have.
