The Stain of Shame! A Loud Call to the Ministry of Social Affairs

Society goes on oblivious of the stain of shame imprinted all over it as we still fail to protect our most vulnerable. The streets of Lebanon are theaters of tragedy exhibiting all the forgotten and rejected that do not conform to society’s code of what is acceptable. The sight of a special needs man I saw yesterday struck a chord in me as I witnessed another remnant of how far our cruelty and selfishness has come.

We live in skyscrapers of indignity thinking we are beyond the ruling of fate. We praise our refinement and progress as intellectual beings, but we have stripped ourselves from the human empathy that has sustained us. Our mere existence came from our ability to sympathize together and take care of the weak.

When did we lose sight of that? How can people just pass by oblivious to all the pain and suffering? All I did was show some human decency and regard him as an entity that matters and it was enough to transform his face into a broad grin. A smile and acknowledgment were enough to brighten his day and restore some sense of worth.

It is appalling that we have reached a time when recognizing and respecting others’ right to exist with dignity is an option. Our treatment of those less fortunate is a true representation of who we are, and until we have the gumption to take a good look at ourselves, we will revert back to the cold caves we crawled out from eons ago.