Stick it to the Man

Salma Ahmed 

Managing English Editor 

Almost the entirety of my adulthood has been spent in fear of getting into trouble. So I’d go to school with my shirt tucked into my skirt, my hair tied neatly and my nails free of any polish. I’d attend all my classes and do all my homework on time in fear of the consequences should I do otherwise.

I did what I had to do to become a star student and to impress my teachers and parents. I was in check.

Years passed with me following this very strict list of rules that had been set for me.

But living in a patriarchy skinned me from any sense of identity. I was taught to cover up, look pretty and speak politely. I had to burn my hair on the regular until it appeared straight because my natural hair was too wild.

I was told to quit biting my nails because no man would want a woman with ugly nails.

So naturally at the first chance I got, I rebelled. This rebellious phase was an essential part in who I ended up becoming. My rebellious phase was by no means my final form but only a step toward it. I dyed my hair red, picked up on some heavily frowned upon habits and made it my goal to destroy all that I’d been forced to believe.

Definitely not the healthiest way to take down the patriarchy but I was finally free so I acted on instinct without giving my actions a second thought.

My state of rebellion resulted in utter and complete chaos, as I destroyed my being physically and mentally and was faced with the reality of having to rebuild myself. With that came experimenting with my personality. I desperately needed a defining characteristic. At a time it was my love for classic rock music then it was my love for philosophy then it was my underweight figure and finally it was my obsession with lifting weights and setting PRs.

If I had never rioted, I would still be living in the cage of rules set for me. I probably would have been veiled with an engagement ring to show off, brainwashed into thinking it is so because of my own choices and free will.

If we never riot we will remain brainwashed going in circles, forever thinking we are finally getting liberated. We have this picture perfect image of a life well-lived yet we do absolutely nothing to change it, we’re too scared to say a word, we’re too scared to object and we’re too scared to make our idea of freedom a reality.

I had this vision of being my own person, with my own set of rules and thoughts. How was I ever to achieve that with the system breathing down my neck and me being static about it all?

Read between the lines, or don’t. But always remember to stick it to the man.