By Bamidele Ademola-Olateju
There is an agonizing sanctity in watching a daughter plead for the life of her father. When a child stands before the world, stripped of pride, begging the universe and human kindness for an intervention against the ruthless claws of late-stage cancer, the only civilized response is reverence, silence, or succor. Yet, beneath that desperate cry for help, the digital sewers opened. Comment sections became a gallery of callousness, where bitter souls weaponized cruelty disguised as opinion.
How did we arrive at a place where human suffering is consumed as casual sport? Mike Tyson once observed with blunt precision: “Social media made you all way too comfortable with disrespecting people and not getting punched in the face for it.”
In our traditional spaces, the rules of social engagement were sacred and self-policing. The physical public square imposed a natural friction on malice. Yoruba culture elevated the ethos of Ọmọlúwàbí, where ìwà (character) and ìtìjú (a healthy sense of shame) governed every utterance. If a venomous or idiotic thought crossed your mind, the imminent social cost, the collective gasp, the elder’s reprimand, the sheer disgrace, often forced that thought to die quietly in the throat where it belonged. Accountability was immediate. Grace was mandatory.
The keyboard, however, has granted cowards an invisible cloak. Anonymity has divorced speech from consequence, liberating the base instincts that civilization spent centuries taming. Behind glass screens, people spit poison they would choke on if forced to look a weeping daughter in the eye. When proximity vanishes, empathy is often the first casualty.
We must refuse to let this digital descent redefine who we are. Our technology may be modern, but our humanity must remain anchored in timeless dignity. If you cannot offer healing, resources, or a silent prayer for a family walking through the valley of the shadow of death, at the very least, master the ancient art of holding your tongue. Dignity is a choice. May we never trade our humanity for cheap digital bravado.
#Omoluwabi #Bamidele #DigitalEthics #EmpathyInAction