There is an African proverb which
states “It takes a village to raise a child” many use it in conversation
however today’s society shows a severe lack of its meaning or understanding. Once
upon a time not so long ago it would be near impossible to not know your
neighbour or your neighbour’s neighbour. Fast forward one generation and my how
things have changed.
Is this an accident? Resoundingly not,
however I believe that we all need to look within to understand our
contribution to the demise of our villages, families and communities. “If there
is no enemy within, the enemy outside can do you no harm.” We have all
experienced some sort of trauma on this journey called life. And we all form
our own coping mechanisms to handle the situations we find ourselves in. Some
better than others and others not at all.
When we examine some of the challenges
that we see on our streets today there may be many who will question if there
is a way forward and if so, how? Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is often displayed
as a pyramid. The lowest levels of the pyramid are made up of the most
basic needs, while the most complex needs are at the top of the pyramid.
Whether you fully agree with his theory or not I’m sure most of you will agree
that when basic needs like food, shelter, clothing, education, health care, and
employment are not being met desperate people will do desperate things.
George Floyd’s
death last year highlighted a cancer in
our society, a cancer affecting many of our black and ethnic minority
communities. Sad to say that when you look at some of the recent events in our history
Stephen Lawrence, Grenfell Tower, Windrush Scandal and more recently the Sewell
Report, they all reinforce that there is an external enemy at work lurking to destroy
all who fail to fit in to their agenda.
How do we start turning things around?
Maybe we need to remind ourselves that we are one race called the human race. In
these troubled times, we need to speak up against personal, systemic and
institutional racism as well as violence. It’s time to build bridges of
friendship and solidarity across cultures and maintain them. We have witnessed
and experienced many a knee-jerk reaction in response to the myriad of challenges
faced in society today perhaps it’s time for a concerted effort where quitting
is not an option.
UBUNTU It’s not about you. It’s not about me. It’s about “We”
working together as one.
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