Raise Your Voice

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There is so much to protest and fight for and so much to question, but where are all the affected???

India is the world's largest democracy and we did not become one overnight. Thousands struggled and lost their lives on the way to achieve this freedom that we are enjoying today. In each struggle, lives were lost and lessons learnt. The one thing that kept the struggle going was the active participation of people. The history of Indian struggle for independence is a lesson to many but equally forgotten by many. There is callous disregard for all the sacrifice as it remains just in the history books. But my topic is not about the struggles and protests that our forefathers put forward. My topic today is about the fights and protests that we are not doing today. It is what we have become as a society.

As I said in the opening, we are all affected by so many small to major devious issues in the society but we have learnt to live with it. Isn't it close enough a crime, not to raise a question/protest against evil in a society which has seen great inspiring fighters? Isn't it a deadly crime to stay passive to all the injustice happening? Isn't it a sin to stay passive to the sufferings and struggles of our own kind? Let me explain in detail the concern that is eating my mind.

A petty shopkeeper sells things at a cost higher than the MRP but we never question him. Road rules are flouted by everyone and no one questions it. People throw waste on the road and make the place unlivable but we never question people who do it. The roads are always in a bad condition which leads to heavy traffic blocks but we have no time to question the authorities. The schools charge exorbitant fees and make education a business making it inaccessible to millions of poor kids but who cares? Officials ask for a bribe to do their job but we never question them as long as our work gets done. There are so many criminal and corrupt politicians in each political party but we still keep voting for them and bring them to power. We have no time to question them or protest against them. Women and children are molested, abused and raped everywhere in public and in private but we turn a blind eye towards it. There is a person on the road bleeding to death, but we have no time to help. The list is so long that I may need two more articles to list them. These are just few which keep eating my brain. These are smaller issues compared to the bigger scale issues that are plaguing the country.

We know there is wrong happening. We know that it is wrong to do certain things. We know that there are people suffering. Or have we become a robot or zombie to a level that we cannot even relate to human emotions? I believe, we have not yet reached such an abysmal situation. If we have an even little amount of humanity left in us, shouldn't we react? Shouldn't we feel frustrated and start protesting against the injustice, the rampant misgovernance and misuse of power?

Though the answer is a YES, we never say it. We are too engrossed in setting up a comfortable living sometimes even scrambling through the day without any aspirations that we have no time for such aroused sensitivity. We feel safe in the comfort of our home and office and imagine that we are living in a safe environment. We do not want to run the risk of getting into any kind of issue that does not affect us directly. Even if certain things affect us directly it is easier for us to just leave it unseen rather than stand up and question or protest.

The reality is we are selfish. I agree some are helpless. There are few who don't have the resource to question or are powerless to stand up and ask. There are few who are ignorant about their own rights and hence are doomed to live in fear. But what about people who are educated and who have access to the resources to eliminate the ignorance? How many of us are even aware of our rights as a citizen of this country? We never feel it is important to know our rights. We consider it a waste of time.

What I have understood from the news that is coming out every day is that it is high time we stand up and fight for our rights, fight against the injustice and misgovernance. It is high time we become active in the daily politics. It is high time we as citizens of this country start joining hands and stay together and gather power. Various kinds of powers are starting to take control of our lives through all indirect ways. If we don't become active, we are bound to get into another kind of slavery which unlike the British will be from within this country. We need to start from our daily issues. We should raise our voice against every evil, start questioning every wrongdoer. I know it is difficult. But as citizens, it is our responsibility. For that being aware of our rights is the first step. I hope more people become aware and stand up for their rights and also for fellow citizens. We cannot remain passive.