Did you know: 11% of the population is left handed

left handed person using a pen

You don't "choose" to be left-handed, you're just wired that way biologically. Picture: Pexels.

If you’re reading this with your left hand hovering over your mouse, keyboard or screen, chances are you’re left handed, and today is YOUR day!

Today is International Left-Handers Day, and it is set aside to highlight and celebrate the uniqueness and differences of left-handed people. 

It is estimated that there are more than 700 million left-handed people in the world – somewhere around 10% of humanity – who struggle with things right-handed people take for granted.

The man to thank for this special day is Dean R Campbell, founder of Left-handers International Inc, after he observed it for the first time on this day in 1976.

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You can also thank your lucky stars you weren’t around in the Middle Ages. During this time, you were deemed to be possessed by demons if you used your left hand as your dominant hand.

And not so long ago, school kids would get a smack on the hand with a ruler if they used their left hand to write.

You don’t “choose” to be left-handed, you’re just wired that way biologically. Why would you choose to be inconvenienced in a world dominated by right-handed people? 

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For example, ring-bound notebooks are a problem for left-handed people, and getting through turnstiles where the ticket/card slot is (predictably) on the right, is also not fun. And before the days of Covid-19, hand-shaking was a clumsy affair.

But before you go, remember you’re in good company: Barack Obama, Whoopi Goldberg, Marilyn Monroe, Spike Lee and Morgan Freeman are among these lofty left-handers.

Even Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are left-handers. Who knows, maybe that’s why things didn’t work out between them. Or maybe they just weren’t right for each other.