Written by Alice Njoki
After listening to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s powerful speech “The Danger of a Single Side Story,” I found myself reflecting deeply on how often we see people and places through one lens. Her words opened my eyes on how one-sided stories shape our thoughts and influence how we view others, not just in the world, but right here at home, in Africa. Let’s explore how dangerous single side stories can be, and how they continue to affect how we live, think, and raise our children.
What’s your first assumption when you see someone for the first time? Maybe you might think, “She looks proud,” or “He looks kind.” Sometimes, without even realizing it, we create stories in our minds about people or places we don’t really know. Those assumptions whether good or bad are the first signs of a single side story.
We live in a world full of stories, but sadly, many of them are told from only one side. When we hear the same version of a story again and again, we begin to believe that it’s the whole truth. But that’s not always the case.
Chimamanda Adichie warned us that when you show people one thing over and over again, that’s what they become in your mind. The problem is, every person, place, or culture has more than one story , but we rarely take time to listen to all sides.
Think about this ; if you tell someone you live in a ghetto in Kenya, what comes to their mind? Maybe, poverty, theft, crime, or all sorts of bad things. But that’s not the whole story. People in the ghetto live freely, work hard, and build their lives every day. Children go to school, people run small businesses, others wake up early to hustle for their families.
Yes, life in such areas might not be easy , the environment might not be conducive and the best , and challenges are many ,but that doesn’t mean people there are lazy or hopeless. In some cases, like when I was growing up, I used to believe that poor people were lazy. That’s what I had always heard , that if you are poor, it means you don’t work hard enough. I grew up thinking that I had to work very hard so that I wouldn’t end up poor. In some ways, it makes sense , if you’re lazy, you can’t survive or make a living.
But as I grew older, I began to question that belief. Was it really true that poor people are lazy? I’ve seen people in poor communities wake up early, work the whole day, and still struggle to make ends meet. I’ve seen mothers run small businesses just to feed their children. I’ve seen young people study under streetlights because they can’t afford electricity. That made me realize poverty doesn’t always mean laziness.
Sometimes, it’s just that opportunities aren’t shared equally. In fact, many of them are some of the most hardworking, creative, and determined individuals. Unfortunately, people often assume that being poor means being lazy, but that’s not true. That assumption is part of the single story that limits how society sees others.
The same happens when people hear about “Africa”. Many people outside the continent imagine poor children, hunger, or dry land with no water. That’s the picture they’ve been shown through movies, TV, and online stories. And Come to think of it, people perceive Africa as poor because of how stories about Africa are told.
When international journalists or filmmakers come to the continent, they mostly go to places like slums, or areas struggling with drought, lack of water, or poverty. They film children walking barefoot to school and women fetching water from dry rivers. But that’s not the whole of Africa.
Africa is rich ,rich in culture, creativity, innovation, and beauty. We have modern cities, industries, brilliant minds, and some of the world’s most breathtaking landscapes. Yes, there are challenges, but those do not define us.
Ironically, even we Africans sometimes believe the same single story. We grow up admiring Western countries so much that we forget to value our own. Children are raised copying the Western lifestyle ,their language, dressing, and habits ,believing it’s better than ours. And slowly, we lose connection to our roots, our pride, and our identity.
It’s just like what Adichie said “if you’ve never been out of your place, that place becomes your worldview”. You only understand life from that small corner you know. For example, when someone mentions Somalia, many people immediately think of war and danger. But fun fact: Somalia also has very beautiful beaches . We just never hear those stories because they’re rarely told.
And when we hear America, we immediately think it’s perfect , rich, peaceful, and powerful. Yes, it has opportunities, but it also has its struggles , gun violence, racism, homelessness, and inequality. Every place has both good and bad sides.
Back here at home, Kenya, single stories show up in how we view each other through tribal stereotypes. When someone says a person is Kikuyu, people often joke, “Ah, they must love money!” If someone is Kisii, people might assume they’re hot-tempered. If you mention a woman from Nyeri, someone might laugh and say, “She beats her husband!” But are all Kikuyus obsessed with money? Are all Kisiis angry? Are all Nyeri women violent? Of course not. These are unfair assumptions that come from single stories and they divide us instead of bringing us together.
The sad truth is, the person who holds power is often the one who controls how stories are told. They decide what the world sees and what it doesn’t. That’s why single stories exist ,because some voices are louder than others.
Single stories make people assume things about you before even knowing you. They make us judge others based on half-truths. But when we start listening to more voices, when we learn to question and look beyond what we see, we begin to understand others better and see their full humanity.
As young people, we must challenge these single stories. Let’s learn to explore, to read widely, to listen deeply. Let’s share our own stories , not just the struggles, but the strength, creativity, and beauty of who we are.
Because when we break free from one-sided thinking, we don’t just change how we see the world , we change the world itself.