Take A Stand: Use Your Voice

“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

Recently, I’ve been feeling more and more compelled to speak up when I think something isn’t right. I’m not too sure if it’s to do with my new role as a Course Rep, or if it’s me growing up. But whatever it is, it’s making me take a stand.

I used to be the person who never spoke out against authority; if I thought something was wrong I would maybe moan about it to friends but I’d never actually do anything about it. My thinking was that even if I said something, my words would be ignored and nothing would be done about it anyway, so what was the point of wasting my time, effort and breath?

But I’ve realised that if everyone stayed silent on issues, whether they be small (like a problem with the way homework is marked) or large (such as Black Lives Matter or Student Tuition Fees), they will never be changed, and those in positions of power will believe that everyone is happy with the way things are.

Whilst I certainly wouldn’t call myself an activist, I’ve learnt that I need to use my voice to make a change, and even if nothing can be done about the issue, at least I’ve raised my concerns, and at least I’ve tried to make a difference. No-one can put you down for trying. I agree that it’s great to see your hard work come to fruition- there’s a huge feeling of success when you’ve been fighting for something and you emerge victorious- however I believe there’s something equally successful about losing a fight. “Losing is part of the game. If you never lose, you are never truly tested, and never forced to grow.” 

I definitely don’t know everything, and there are some issues which I don’t feel ‘qualified’ to question, but I suppose that’s a question of me growing up and becoming wiser. I’ve been on a journey of self-improvement over the past year and a bit, and it doesn’t look like it’s stopping anytime soon so I’m just going to run with it and see where it takes me.

I guess what I wanted to get from this post is to inspire those of you who think something is wrong, be it right now or at some point in the future, to talk to the relevant people about it to see what can be done. Take a stand and use your voice. Whatever the situation may be, you could be the one to change it, and wouldn’t that be an amazing feeling?