Lol, that's one of the things I have been battling with. We live in a world where people judge based on where you came from, the kind of name you bear, your appearance, and so on.
But it ought not to be that way, coming from a particular place, speaking a certain way, or dressing in a certain manner doesn't define people.
People have different personalities and no matter what is being said and believed about where they came from, how they dress, look, or speak, it does not conclude anything about them until tested and proven.
I have seen people maltreat and malign others because of what people believed about the kind of family they came from. Sometimes, they have not even had any experience with them, personally. I used to do that too but i had to stop when I came to maturity.
Stereotypes can be misleading, it's evil to conclude that someone is a certain way because you saw something in them that people already judged. People can be different, we have different hearts and different mindsets, you would be swimming in error if that's how you judge people.
I believe a lot of us have been subjected to stereotypes of different kinds. For me, the most common one is my name.
Whenever I tell young people like myself, especially ladies, that my name is “Emmanuel,” they conclude that I am a playboy and an ardent womanizer.
A majority of them have said it to my face countless times and even given me examples of some of the people bearing Emmanuel.
It's funny how we think, yes, someone bearing “Emmanuel,” can be like that, maybe a lot of people bearing the name are like that, but that doesn't mean that anyone bearing Emmanuel is a womanizer or a playboy.
Everyone bearing the name that behaved like that chose to be that way. There are people bearing other names that also behave in that manner, does it mean they are Emmanuel too? Funny.
This thing is common in my place, and I think it's a bad mentality. The moment you mention a name, people already have a picture of something in their minds.
Because a person bears a name you have had a bad experience with or heard something about, doesn't mean he or she is like that. Everyone has their qualities, give them the chance to prove themselves.
Another stereotype I suffer from is where I came from. In Nigeria, some people believe that anyone who comes from the North is Hausa, and anyone who is Hausa is dull, uneducated, and probably dangerous.
I am not even from the North, I reside in Nasarawa which falls under the middle belt but you will explain tirelessly to someone from the East or West and they will not believe you.
Once you are from this part of the world, they call you “Aboki or Hausa.” Funny how some people think Aboki means something bad, but it actually means “Friend.”
There are also many religions in the north just like in other parts of the nation and the people here are good, smart, and educated. If you have encountered the smart ones you will understand what I am saying.
Seriously it hurts sometimes to be seen a certain way simply because you came from a particular location and geopolitical zone.
People are different, and people have different hearts, it's possible you had an encounter several times with people from that place and the results were the same all through, yet it doesn't qualify everyone there like that.
Well, whenever I am being stereotyped, what I do is consider who is doing it. If it is someone or a group of people I can enlighten, I don't hesitate to do so but if it's someone or a group of people that I can not enlighten, I walk away and allow them to believe whatever they want.
Not everyone is ready to learn, and not everyone thinks the way we do, insisting or retaliating sometimes might result in something beyond our control.
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