Choose to be an Equal Partner to Everyone on Earth

“Every individual has the same fundamental human rights as every other...”

Robert Alberti & Michael Emmons, Your Perfect Right

In their legendary book Your Perfect Right, Robert Alberti and Michael Emmons go on to clarify the above statement adding “regardless of gender, age, ethnicity, role or title.” I don’t see any need to clarify, however, because it becomes a means of still being exclusionary. What about sexual orientation? Does “ethnicity” include “nationality” or “skin color”? How about religious preference? When we add on “regardless of” it opens the door to being exclusionary while still looking inclusive.

Let’s face it: We’re all equal in this world—and I do mean EVERY human being—period! There are NO EXCEPTIONS. That said, it would be much easier for us all to exercise our human rights if we all BELIEVED we were equal and if we were assertive enough to keep people from treating any of us as if we are less than they are.

The book Your Perfect Right is all about learning to be assertive. Assertiveness is often difficult for people who suffer from codependency because we don’t believe we are equal to others. Our relationships have never been with equal partners only because we have always seen ourselves as lesser than everyone else. As a result, we stuffed our own beliefs, feelings and needs as not good enough, and we adopted all of the beliefs, feelings and needs of others as if they were our own. By doing so, we tried desperately to become the people we thought were good enough by losing ourselves in those people. Somehow we thought we’d finally gain worth by becoming anyone other than ourselves.

In recovery we learn that we are born with our worth intact. We are all born equal and no one can take away our equality from us. We can, however, give it away. And that’s what most of us have done. Luckily, we can also take our self-worth back. And we can learn to defend it and be assertive in protecting our rights as equal partners to everyone else in this world.

If you have given your power—your equality-- away for any reason, now is the time to choose to take it back. YOU ARE AS GOOD AS EVERYONE ELSE ON THE FACE OF THIS EARTH—BELIEVE IT!!!

Start building equal relationships with equal partners. Choose to believe you are good enough and to express your true self: Your wants, needs, beliefs and values. If people don’t like them, suggest agreeing to disagree while still respecting each other as equals. If they don’t want to accept that, leave them to their self-delusional prejudice. Pray for them, bless them, but don’t allow them to mess up your life. Release them if you have to do so to protect yourself from harm. But never give up your fundamental human rights to be who you are and what you are—equal with everyone who lives and breathes on this planet.