Let’s Talk About Meritocracy
Story Time!
It was International Men’s Day some days ago. On this day, a colleague asked whether HR would not forget to publish a wish for the Men as they usually did for the Women. In fact, HR failed to send out a wish. He and others with him counter, “Women are never forgotten; there’s International Women’s Day, International Day of the Girl Child, Mother’s Day… and a host of others. Why all these recognitions for Women, and none for men." I gave him a look. And then I laughed.
Afterwards, he comes straight for me. “Yes, I need your response to this. Everything is now centered on women. Why do women benefit so much these days.?” I listened with intent. In that moment, in my mind I am thinking, the question which should be asked rather should be, “Why are we forgetting the men these days. And not, why is everything centered on women?”
For starters, everything is not centered on Women. That is simply not the case. Secondly, I answered, “You should begin from the genesis of the issue.” Which has informed this article.
It is without debate that the world since its inception has been and still is a Patriarchy. Which means that men generally hold more power and face fewer systemic obstacles than women. You find this in politics, education, economics, especially at the work place, in marriage and society as a whole. (I have personally been a victim of unequal pay gap).
In recent times, specifically since Beijing, attempts have been made with little progress made to cause a shift in the world’s stagnation with Patriarchy. Some of this has been achieved through the use of Affirmative Action; where policies are intentionally designed to increase the representation of groups who have historically been disadvantaged or underrepresented – eg. racial minorities and in this specific case, women.
Whenever Affirmative Action is mentioned, certain men and some women who (have not analyzed the issue thoroughly) quickly discredit it by variously throwing in carelessly : “What happened to Meritocracy?” “Meritocracy is fair, That must be the yardstick. If Meritocracy is not used, then obviously, it implies the women are not capable.” (Beg to differ here, though).
And hence the subject of Meritocracy and Affirmative Action has plagued both divides of the debate since the time they were both introduced. No matter which side of the coin you belong, you find the stance of the other baffling.
For the Pro-Meritocracy divide, rewards are perfectly just, once they are based on merit. But is there objectively a level playing ground? Is there not implicit bias, if our sample space is already a Patriarchy to begin with? Will that not merely reproduce inequality upon inequality? For instance, don’t women usually have to work twice, thrice, ten times harder than men in a similar role in order to “prove” themselves? And even if they proved this beyond a shade of doubt, certain men would play the Affirmative Action card, pretending that those women are there not because they are capable, but because they have been ‘considered’, thereby undermining their knowledge, hardwork and skill.
Another reason I don’t go over-hailing Meritocracy is that those in charge (the gatekeepers) of this system only churn people like themselves, and the bias only gets worse, never disappears.
Staying on topic, the term meritocracy was coined by Michael Young, and used in a dystopian warning, and not as a compliment. So its proponents must be careful not to exult it as the Be-It-All, Be-ALL, looking down on Affirmative Action, not recognizing it as stepping in to soften the harsh realities of a Pro-Meritocratic System which purports to be fair, but can result in injustice and unfairness.
As I conclude, I would like to point out that the world even in the year 2025 is still a Patriarchy, therefore if a little progress is being made by the celebration of women’s day, with a nod to women and their achievements, let it not reside in the mouths of men, to now say that they want the same recognition for men. Because they already have the recognition. It is after all a men's world, women are merely asking for a little of the leverage they have had since the world began.
In order not to sound unreasonable, or in order not to be labelled a rigid unbending feminist, let me at this juncture (as most Ghanaians love to say) wish all the men who deserve it, a Happy International Men’s Day.
Mena Akua I agree with your sentiments almost entirely – the historical imbalance is real, and celebrating women for the mountains they’ve had to climb is not only right, it’s long overdue. However, one gentle footnote: the so-called “elevation” of patriarchy wasn’t a strategic boardroom decision by men; it predates modern society and traces back to the very origins and fall of mankind. In other words, no committee of ancient men sat down and voted, “Let’s dominate for eternity” -history simply unfolded that way.
That said, applauding the resilience and triumphs of women should never mean placing the boy child in the background like an old office stapler – still useful, but permanently ignored. We can cheer for the girl child without pretending the boy child runs on solar power and emotional silence.
I appreciate that you ultimately wished men well – a happy ending most men are not used to outside Nollywood scripts. Balance, after all, is not betrayal. Celebrate women loudly, yes – but let’s not mute the men while doing so. Happy International Men’s Day, gentlemen… we, too, deserve cupcakes occasionally.
Thanks for your reply Edem. Afraid I have to grudgingly agree with the majority of the points you have raised above. Yes it is good to celebrate and encourage women, but we cannot leave the young boys in limbo. That would be keeping to false balances.