Labels make me cringe.
Within my friend group I’m considered “the vegan.” That’s my label but that’s not who I am. I’m not just a “vegan” or “health nut.” Like I’m a person. Labels stretch farther than this, though.
I’d like to begin my stating how much I admire the LGBQT community because there has been so much progress with equality over the past couple of years which has benefited family members and friends of mine. I just don’t understand why there are all these labels for people, like:
Straight
Homosexual
Gay
Lesbian
Bisexual
Pansexual
Asexual
Heterosexual
Metrosexual
Transgender
I understand a lot of people don’t feel comfortable in their skin, but the labels come off as confusing and do not define the person for who they really are. A student in my high school I graduated last year transitioned from a girl to a guy, and whenever someone says his name it’s as if the only important of aspect of that person is his transition.
Let me tell you something very important, it’s not. He plays sports, a couple instruments, and is graduating high school and going off to college. He has friends, and a family. His label as transitioning is not his only attribute, it is part of him, but since there is a label on him, it’s all anyone will remember him as. That’s not fair.
Like I shouldn’t have to tell people if I’m straight or lesbian. I’m attracted to who I’m attracted too. If I end up falling in love with a guy, fine by me. If it’s a girl, alright, cool. That doesn’t make me bisexual, or confused. It makes me a person who likes humans, and I shouldn’t need a label or define what my attraction is or isn’t.
What about outward appearance?
Hot
Skinny
Thin
Fat
Curvy
Overweight
Obese
Black
White
Short
Tall
Girls and guys suffer daily with the need to feel accepted by society and this goes back to a “label.” Do you ever notice how when you’re trying to get a friend or family member to remember someone from school or a workplace, and you place a label on them? “She’s the fat one with blonde hair” or “The short girl who always has her hair up.” When this happens, labeling happens, and this how someone begins to remember someone.
I’d rather remember someone from how they treat others, or what they’re in school for.
Like the fact “thin privilege” exists? What kind of crap is that? The fact people got jobs over another person based on their outward appearance is one of the most ridiculous thing to exist in our society.
By their outward appearance? Like that’s not who they are, it’s just what they look like. This is also why a lot of people try to change their outward appearance, because people don’t accept them for their labels, so they try to rip it off by either losing weight or dying their hair.
I’m all for eating healthy and trying a different hair color, but when someone begins to alter their appearance because they are trying to fit a certain image, it’s a societal issue.
It's why a lot of girls and guys develops eating disorders, or some commit suicide if they can't fit a certain frame.
Labels also don't make sense when it’s based off of someone’s past. Like a mistake someone made, like if someone cheated on their girlfriend in the beginning of high school. That label will follow them forever unless they move away and start all over. Hell yes, cheating is scum and no one should do it. Yet, that doesn’t dictate or define who the person is.
WE ARE HUMAN, WE ARE BORN TO MAKE MISTAKES.
People change every day, It’s a fact of life. People grow, and if we’re going to judge them for what they used to do, we’re staying stationary in time and not growing along with society.
What I’m trying to get at and nudge at, is the unimportance of labels. We’re so quick in today’s society to make snap judgments about others which isn’t what humanity should be. Instead of deciding whether or not a person is “person” enough we should get to know them, and not decide if they’re worthy enough based on their label. What I really aim for, is to get rid of labels altogether because, at the end of the day, they don’t matter.
Like I’m not just “a vegan.” I’m a human. You’re a human. That’s enough for me to realize there shouldn’t be a place for judgment. One day we’re all going to look the same, and we shouldn’t wait for that point to stop placing judgment on others.
