Voices Behind the Screen: Should They Be Dismissed?

I always say that social media is a blessing to many people, especially those who can't express themselves physically but could do that without revealing who they are online; they are called anonymous. Even if you try getting them, you won't know who they are. So, social media is like a covering to not expose who they are until they are done expressing their feelings and concerns about certain issues.

Then, we have those who won't even need to cover themselves or be in hiding, but openly reveal who they are and still share their dissatisfaction with certain things they disagree with.

But then, we have freedom of speech, which allows everyone to freely say whatever they want and is in their minds, but in another case, just because you are given the go-ahead to do that doesn't mean one shouldn't learn to tame their tongues and not say some things out loud, especially when such an individual is spreading hateful speech to hurt another person(s), organisations or institutions.

In such a case, it's ideal for such an individual to directly speak to a few people regarding the issue instead of going openly to expose them and most importantly, verify information before spreading anything out. Failure to do this might mean tainting the policies and values of such institutions, companies or organisations they work for.

Albeit, I don't think dismissing someone immediately because of things said online that go against polices and values is good enough because one thing I understand is that for every action, there's always a reason behind it.

Also, when such an individual is only expressing themselves over some issues they don't agree with and just need to share them on their accounts with no aim of getting at other people and hurting them, it's not for such a person to be dismissed just like that.

No one would come out to share something disheartening without having some reasons that prompt such acts. It only calls for such an individual to be listened to, start a dialogue to know their "whys" and then, if a second chance would be given in such situations for them to change, that's better than just dismissing them from work or school.

Looking at it from another perspective, I believe every human being ought to respect the policies and values of the institutions they are in or organisations they work for and not try to prove they have the boldness to come out and destroy their reputation.

To the best of my knowledge, organisations/institutions would work towards ensuring their values and policies are well protected, and anyone found trying to violate the rules or doing something against them would be punished for it, but not to the extent of stopping them from working or schooling due to rash decisions.

Take, for instance, the youth corps member who made a video criticising the bad governance in Nigeria and was punished by the NYSC officials. If such a person is speaking the truth about corruption, inflation, unemployment, etc, without attacking individuals or inciting violence, should such a person be silenced or stopped from serving her nation?

Of course, there are limits. If an individual intentionally leaks confidential information about organisations they work for or spreads hateful speech that directly harms the reputation of an institution with lies, I think taking such an action may be justified, and if it calls for such an individual to be dismissed, it's okay.

Just like I said, though we have freedom of speech for the right purpose, it shouldn't be used for the opposite purpose because that is, in a way, ruining the reputation of individuals in an organisation and the institution itself.

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