Why do I want to be a humanitarian?

Ever since I was a child, I have always wanted to help people, I wanted to be of some use to people. Initially I thought I wanted to be a doctor so anytime anyone asked me what I wanted to become in the future it was easy to answer, I’d be quick to say a doctor and when I was asked what kind of doctor I wanted to become it was always a gynecologist. That wasn’t what I wanted though, that was my mother’s idea. Well that all went down the drain when I grew up and I realized blood made me queasy and that I was easily irritated, that obviously wouldn’t go down well in a hospital. So that meant I had to find another career path, that was when I thought of psychology because helping people understand their emotions was also helping people especially in this day and age where anything really could cause a significant impact on our mental health. Plus the way Nigerians are raised and the way we live, it’s an emotionally and mentally scarring place we live in. That path was shot down by family, it didn’t seem feasible to them because I wouldn’t be able to find a job apparently. Now that I am done with my undergrad, why not humanitarianism. It is such a broad area of work that could put me in communities that are in dire need. Be it gender equality, gender based violence, education, climate action, human welfare, world hunger or poverty. The world is focused on moving forward, it so often forgets about the people it is leaving behind or has left behind. We still have communities at home and abroad that do not have access to electricity, water, decent food. The list could go on. The conditions of the IDPs in Nigeria are deplorable, as corrupt a system that we have, these people do not have proper shelter, are they getting access to good food and clean water? Who is looking out for them? What about the people in war torn areas, what is being done to adequately protect them? There are rules and systems in place intended to cater to those people but are they enforced? Look at what is happening in China with the Uighur Muslims, the Rohingya Muslims, war torn Syria, the Palestinians that are being displaced. Roads in and out of Gaza has been blocked, humanitarian aid can’t get in. These genocides/war crimes are happening under the watchful eye of the institutions that were created to prevent that. Why are they folding their hands and watching. I do understand there is information that I’m not privy to, but is what we are after so big that we forget about our humanity. Our humanity is our essence, no matter the cost of ambition, one should not lose his/her humanity. I feel this innate desperation to make things better, there are so many areas of the world that need to be worked on, and there are so many people that are being forgotten or left behind. Home or abroad, the world is broken, our society is broken. From the way we treat our women, to the way we raise our children. There needs to be drastic social reform, culture is good but not when it forces people to stay in situations that endanger their lives. Our laws need to be reformed to adequately protect everyone. I want a safer world for women and children, I want quality education to be easily accessed by everyone, I want gender equality, I want people living in war torn areas to be adequately protected and cared for. What I keep asking myself is how do I fit in? How do I get myself in the door? How do I begin to work towards my goals? There is so much untapped potential in the world, I want to get myself to a position where I can properly help the communities in need.