Jun 15, 2020
Today, we are living through double jeopardy. A globally unprecedented crisis. Not only the Corona crisis but we now have heightened awareness on another previously ignored crisis that has been going on for centuries. The crisis of injustice that ignores the human dignity of people.
On 25th May 2020, George Floyd lost his life under the knee of a US police officer while grasping for his last breath of life and saying "I can't breathe" for a whole 8 minutes 46 seconds. The longest 8 minutes 46 seconds ever recorded in this day and age.
His death represents many injustices against race, ethnicity, women, and differently-abled human beings. This has resulted in global inter-racial demonstrations occurring during this pandemic.
I recently attended an online brand session facilitated by my friend and brand expert, Judith Owembabazi from Uganda and she inspired me with the question that I am asking today. Today whose neck are you kneeling on? My reflections are anchored on my belief and the fact that what we do in private has a public multi-generational effect.
If your family complains that you are not available, you don't listen, you are too self-absorbed, you don't take care of their physical and emotional needs, then you are kneeling on their necks.
If your team is telling you (fearfully) that you are unfair, that you are firing them without dignity, that you are putting profit before lives, you are kneeling on their necks.
To you men, if your wife is telling you that you don't listen, that you are creating a fearful culture in your marriage, that you are abusing her emotionally or physically, that you don't prioritize her needs yet you committed to doing so on your wedding day, then you are kneeling on her neck.
To my fellow women, if your husband is telling you are sarcastic, unfair, moody, that you do not respect him, that you continuously compete with him to the detriment of your marriage, then you are kneeling on his neck.
To my fellow parents, if our children are telling us we are not present, we are more focused on gadgets and work, that we are not listening to them, loving them with discipline, then we are kneeling on their necks. I was deeply moved by the fact that George painfully called out to his deceased mother during his final moments. The positive power and legacy of a parent cannot be overstated.
To my fellow CEO's and board members globally, if our teams cannot see and hear our courageous yet compassionate concern about them, if we are more interested in self-preservation than the organization's purpose and well-being during this crisis, if we are treating them without human dignity, then we are kneeling on their necks.
To my fellow business owners globally, if we are developing unethical products and services to make a quick dollar if our business mission is selfish and is not about serving the underserved and solving problems which continue to emerge during this crisis, we are kneeling on our customers' necks.
To public sector leaders, if you are unprofessional and corrupt, misappropriating public resources which we trusted you to be a caretaker of, then you are kneeling on the necks of your citizens and on multiple generations in your lineage.
Do you want to stop kneeling on someone else's neck? Then commit to reflect and change your mindset. Learn and develop your virtuous transformational leadership. Raise your accountability for your words and actions.
Leaders with or without title, let us create a psychologically safe space for others. All anyone wants to know is whether you hear them, whether you see them and whether what they say matters to you.
Today, let us stop kneeling on their necks and instead start breathing life into their lives with the singular positive power of our private and public example.
