Quote from Segun Ite on April 1, 2022, 10:38 PM

Alopecia areata is an auto-immune disease in which a person loses some or all of his/her hair, also known as spot baldness. An auto-immune disease is an internally destructive disease in which the immune system of the victim's body malfunctions, leading to attacks on its own cells. This occurs as a result of the immune system and antibodies recognizing the cells as 'dangerous'.

An auto-immune disease's mechanism is a spontaneously destructive one as little or no external factors are involved in the degrading process.

Alopecia areata may be caused, induced as a result of stress, environmental exposure. It could also be hereditary in nature. The disease occurs in many forms

Alopecia areata monocularis is a form in which baldness occurs on just a region of the head, while Alopecia areata multilocularis occurs across multiple regions on the scalp. For ophiasis, hair loss takes a wave-like shape across the boundaries of the head.  Alopecia areata totalis has the entire hair on the person's head chopped off due
while in alopecia areata universalis, body hair is entirely lost(all parts of the body that have hair)
In alopecia, the immune system of the body attacks the anagen hair follicles and suppresses their growth. Alopecia is non-contagious and may be hereditary. It can be treated by cortisone injections

 

The disease has been gaining public recognition following popular American actress's case, Jada Pinkett Smith, and it has been proven that people with this disease may suffer from stigma, being victims of unethical, self-esteem degrading jesting and mockery

The 50 year old who has been battling the condition for some time now, decided to shave her head entirely in order to make it look less conspicuous, being hairless since mid 2021

At the 94th Academy Awards(Oscars) which held at the Dolby Theatre, Los Angeles, California on March 27, 2022, Pinkett and her husband, popular actor and rapper, Will Smith, were in attendance. The event was also host to a lot of superstars and talents across the entertainment industry.

In one unforgettable moment, which surely overshadowed the entire event, 57 year old comedian, Chris Rock was to present an award for the best Documentary Feature, when he decided to light up the star-studded room with his wits. Eventually, he got his business Pinkett's way, cracking an expensive joke about her shaved head. It went this way
Rock: 'Jada, I love you'. 'G.I Jane 2'. 'Cannot wait to see this'. (Rock was referencing a 1997 American war movie in which Demi Moore played the fictional character, Lieutenant Jordan O'Neill, having her head shaved for the lead role).

At this moment, everyone, or at least, almost everyone was laughing due to Rock pulling a 'good one', of course, except Jada who just rolled her eyes, looking upset. Even Will Smith appeared to be laughing and having a good time. Just when it looked as though Chris was drawing the curtain on his quip, The Fresh Prince(Will) walked from where he was seated, straight at Rock, hesitating for a mini-second, before landing a terrifying slap across the comedian's face.

'Wow, Will Smith just smacked the shit out of me' Rock responded as Will walked back to his seat, his facial expression somewhat neutral.
As Rock continued, Smith cut him, telling him at the top of his voice to keep his(Will) wife's name out of his _______ mouth. The King Richard actor repeated the statement, in an angrier tone this time around, as a defeaning silence swept over the room. People were shocked as to confirmations that Will's actions had been real and not staged or scripted as they initially thought.

Less than an hour later, Will would receive the Best Actor award for his role in King Richard and took the moment to apologize to everyone (except Rock) for his actions, receiving a standing ovation. His actions were however met with widespread criticism on social media, as there were labels of the anger-fueled response as an act of 'violence' by various celebrities. Some though, who had either suffered from the same condition or were emphatic enough to understand Will's plight, took to his defence.

Smith later apologized to Rock via an Instagram post calling his actions 'inexcusable'.

Following fears of being suspended or permanently expelled from The Academy, the 53-year old decided to resign himself from the Motion Pictures Organization(with his actions still under review)

All this mishap happened because of a person's internal crisis, struggles, a businessman's carelessness and recklessness in going about his merchandise and probably an offended person's overreactions

That asides, people who suffer from alopecia and other medical conditions at large have enough mind struggles and battles to overcome, plunging into the pool of utter rejection and feelings of worthlessness, they do not need more from the public. They do not need people to remind them of how terrible they look. They do not need those who try to drag them just because they are victims of circumstances which could be anybody's. Rather, they need love, care, support and approval.