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Right from the Stone age, a lot of responsibility lies on the shoulder of a man, despite not willingly choosing the role, being a male child has dictated his roles in the society.
A symbol of strength in the family, always inclined to prove himself to the family, not just for acceptance but to be worthy of his gender, As a person who would one day be the head of a family, such practice is considered a training on becoming a man.
As times goes by, civilisation and different modern cultures came into place but despite the impact of the civilisation it doesn't seem to lessen the burden of being a man.
There are different talks and discussion about gender inequality but such talks only exist in the book because the society seems to dictate the roles each gender needs to play.
Being a Nigerian doesn't make this roles get any easier, I remember during my HND program at moshood abiola Polytechnic, my first semester HND1, an incident occurred, which I considered funny and sad.
Part of the courses outlined for the semester includes a course called Advertising, which involves creating a practical advert video and radio jingle for any brand, products or services. we were divided into groups, I was chosen as the head of the group based on group members vote, this group includes a total number of 33 students.
We shared ourselves into different departments just to make advert practical more easier, I was in the research and client finding department, we set out in groups to request the approval of different companies to use their brand or product for an advert practical, which will be solely funded by us.
After much effort, we got the contact of a hotel manager through one of the group members, immediately I scheduled a date with the manager to discuss our proposal, the man agreed. I got there the next day with one of my male group members, we sat with the manager to discuss what we have to offer, he seems interested but not too convinced that we can offer what we promised, since we are just students not a certified advertising practitioners.
The hotel is one of the biggest hotel in Abeokuta, named continental hotel. knowing the status of this hotel, it was perfect for the advert practical. I got home and started thinking of multiple ways to convince the manager to approve our proposal, but then something came to my mind and I was like why not try another approach.
I went there the next day but this time with two of my female group members, we got there and for the first time this man instantly offered us a sit, at that moment I knew my tactics were working. I sat down to discuss what we talked about earlier but is attention was so fixed on my female colleagues to the extent he wasn't paying any attention to what I was saying, after I was done talking without much stress, he signed the letter and asked if he could have a conversation with one of the ladies about our practical, I knew what it was all about, which have already discussed with the ladies before bringing them along.
I got outside with my approval letter but couldn't tell if I was happy or sad with the outcome of the meeting, I just felt disappointed about what the society has become, pleasure has been prioritised over value.
And this factor is mostly common among company owners, That tends to give more employment to women, using them as marketers, using them as a means to deploy one of the most deceptive advert technique called sexual appeal. putting a man without such privilege to be left without a job.
In a world filled with unfairness, without the adequate connections it is almost impossible to get a good job, in the mist of all this, being a man still serve as a disadvantage. What crime did we commit?
Due to pressure such as this from the society, a lot of men has ventured to all sort of illegal activities just to meet up with the societal demands, which has landed a lot of men in jail or worst in early grave.
In a world where a mans' worth is measured based on his material possessions and net worth, what is the essence of an average man with limited financial support in such a society.
As a person with a wide understanding of my environment, knowing the disadvantages that comes with being a man, I never deprived my self from focusing on my goals and objectives, I work twice as hard to meet with my target since I'm well aware of the privilege I lack, I focus more on the privilege I do have.
Hoping as time goes by the perception of the society I live in changes and every gender would be offered same opportunity and equal privilege.
All pictures used are mine or else indicated otherwise