09/29/2026
Ernest Doitoe, a son of Nimba and a visionary Liberian writes the below piece of mind enlightenment article. 👇👇👇👇👇
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I would appreciate it if you could take some time to read this piece.
Beyond the Motorcycle: Respecting the Hustle That Moves Society
In every city, there are people whose work is visible every day but whose value is too often ignored. Motorcycle riders are among them. They carry students to school, workers to their jobs, parents to hospitals, goods to markets, and families safely home after long days.
Yet, despite the important service they provide, many riders are treated with disrespect. They are insulted, looked down on, and sometimes treated as though their work has no dignity. This must change.
A Personal Journey of Survival
Between 2016 and 2020, I left my parents and moved to Monrovia to pursue my education. Like many young people, I arrived with hope, dreams, and a determination to build a better future through school.
However, life did not remain easy. Around 2019 to 2020, I faced serious challenges. I had to find a way to support myself and meet basic needs, including school transportation, food, and other personal expenses. Riding a motorcycle became one of the ways I survived.
That experience taught me an important lesson: behind every motorcycle rider is a human being with a story.
Some are students struggling to pay tuition. Some are fathers working hard to feed their children. Some are husbands trying to provide for their wives. Some are young people who could not find formal employment but refused to sit idle. They chose honest work rather than depending on others or turning to harmful activities.
There is dignity in that choice.
Motorcyclists Keep Communities Moving
Motorcycle riders do far more than transport passengers from one place to another. They are an essential part of everyday life in Monrovia and across Liberia.
Think about it:
How do many children get to school when their parents are busy or when public transportation is unavailable?
How do workers reach their offices, shops, markets, construction sites, and other workplaces on time?
How do people move quickly when traffic is heavy or when they need urgent transport?
How do families travel through communities where taxis and buses may not easily reach?
How do people carry small goods, food items, parcels, and supplies from one place to another?
For many Liberians, motorcycle riders are not merely an option; they are a necessity. They provide affordable, flexible, and accessible transportation, especially for people who cannot afford private cars or expensive taxi fares.
Their work helps communities function.
The Pain of Disrespect
It is painful to see a motorcycle rider treated badly simply because of the work he does.
Recently, I watched a driver splash dirty water on a bike rider. Instead of apologizing, the driver insulted him, calling him useless and unserious. The rider was not only soaked with dirty water; he was publicly humiliated.
Such behavior reveals a deeper problem in society: we have become too comfortable disrespecting people whose work we do not consider important enough.
We may laugh at bike riders, call them names, or judge them by their clothes, their motorcycles, or the roads they travel. But we often forget that when we are late for work, we may call them. When our children need a ride to school, we may depend on them. When we need to get somewhere quickly, they are usually available.
It is unfair to rely on people’s services while refusing to respect their humanity.
Every Honest Job Deserves Respect
No profession makes a person more valuable than another. A person wearing a suit and sitting in an air-conditioned office deserves respect, but so does the person riding a motorcycle under the hot sun, in rain, dust, traffic, and danger.
Respect should not be based on clothing, salary, workplace, or social status. It should be based on humanity, honesty, and the effort a person makes to earn a living.
Many bike riders are responsible. They have homes, families, children in school, bills to pay, and dreams for the future. Some are even doing financially better than people who appear more successful on the outside. But whether a rider earns a little or a lot should not matter. What matters is that they are working honestly.
A motorcycle rider may be funding a child’s education. He may be saving to start a business. He may be supporting relatives in the village. He may be trying to pay rent. He may be building a better future one trip at a time.
Before insulting him, we should remember that we may not know his story.
A Call to Appreciate the Hustle
Life pushes people into different forms of work. Not everyone gets the same opportunities, but everyone deserves the chance to work with dignity.
The young man riding a motorcycle today may become a business owner tomorrow. The rider taking children to school may be paying for his own education at night. The person people call “useless” may be the main reason a family has food on the table.
We should stop measuring people’s worth by the type of work they do. Instead, we should appreciate those who wake up early, face hardship, and work honestly to care for themselves and their families.
Let us learn to speak kindly to motorcycle riders. Let us stop insulting them because of their hustle. Let us recognize their contribution to our communities and our economy.
A motorcycle rider is not useless. He is a worker. He is a provider. He is a parent, a student, a dreamer, and an important part of society.
Respect the hustle. Respect the rider. Respect every honest worker.
