“The Importance of Objectivity”.
July 1, 2019 by ThySista
Filed under Health & Wellness, News, Opinion, Weekly Columns
(ThySistas.com) Read the following statements in order from A to C.
- Statement A: Kashala Francis was a 13-year-old child from Houston who died from a brain tumor.
- Statement B: Kashala Francis was a 13-year-old child from Houston who died from a brain tumor after a fight with another neighborhood teen.
- Statement C: Kashala Francis was a 13-year-old child from Houston who died from a brain tumor after a fight. She and her opponent had several confrontations leading up to the final fight that would ultimately lead (but not necessarily the deciding factor) to her death.
Did your perspective about Kashala change? IF so, it is not surprising.
Social media and internet usage, in general, give us the opportunity to research and find information at a faster pace. They are really beneficial and should be celebrated. I also believe that we have a responsibility, however, to understand the importance of developing objectivity so we can be more credible, we think more before speaking, and we can have better dialogue with others regardless if they agree with us or not. 
Milli Vanilli. Soulja Boy. Donald Trump. All famous? Yes. All men? Yes. All liars? Absolutely. Once the truth about each of these people came to light, their credibility went down a dirty toilet in a nightclub bathroom. One of the biggest things developing objectivity can do for people is to build their credibility. Credibility builds trust. Trust is a very difficult trait to come by lately with people attempting to “catfish” people over social media and develop “alternative facts” to the truth. How does this happen? All you have to do is simply do more research for a different point of view. When I first heard about the Kashala Francis incident, I immediately became emotionally invested in Kashala because I knew what it meant to be bullied. It wasn’t until after I read another article telling the point of view of the child who she was fighting with that I realized I couldn’t feel sorry about a situation that could have been avoided. So when I discuss this topic of bullying with others, I can provide multiple points of view. It’s no longer me imposing just one point of view onto people. It’s now me giving them the opportunity to think before they speak or make a decision.
One of the main reasons I got into trouble so much in third grade was because I didn’t think before I spoke. I just said what I wanted to say. I missed a lot of recesses due to my lips. I’m certain there are some adults out there now that would have the same problem now. Developing objectivity could help build better relationships in this endeavor because we would be more inclined to think before we speak. We would consider the words we use to develop a better sense of who we are. Consider the same Kashala Francis case. If I didn’t take the extra time to do the research, I would have naturally assume that Kashala was the only innocent party in the situation. After reading the point of view of the parent of the other child involved, I realized that there was more to this story than just bullying. There is also a parental factor involved. How could these parents be ok with these two kids constantly fighting? Why was there not some type of conversation to quell this issue? How in the world could this tumor not be recognized before? All of these questions lead to my final reason objectivity is important: healthy dialogue.
Is it me or have most people on social media been listening to “Knuck If You Buck” by Crime Mob when they comment sometimes on certain topics on social media and they do not agree? For example, I have two former students who use Twitter on a daily basis. One of these students is an avid Trump supporter. The other student is not. When one posts about something concerning their stance on a topic, the other is extremely harsh and disrespectful when responding. When I look at their comments, you can tell that they are just sniping at each other. They are not trying to understand each other’s point of view. Developing objectivity would allow for these two students to have a dialogue that is healthy. Instead of just screaming via words to be heard, they would have research to back up their stance on their topic. It would no longer be just because I want to “troll” or “be emotional” because they disagree. When I choose to discuss bullying with people, I can use my knowledge about Kashala Francis to give multiple points and discuss those in a rational matter instead of just basing it on my experience.
We live in a world where fact and opinion should be separate, but they are not. Emotions and lack of knowledge make it difficult for people to know who is real and who not (S/O to Jadakiss) is. Objectivity, however, could quell this evil beast and allow for change. Trust would improve. Thinking would improve. Dialogue would improve. These improvements could lead to a greater society online and in person.
Staff Writer; J. W. Bella
May also follow this talented sister online over at; JWB Writes.
