...'cause you guys clearly have a lot to say about the topic (because you're awesome) and because understanding race and racism and stereotypes and where they come from has the potential to "awaken our humanity," as McBride says.
** Before you proceed, please be mindful of your comments and of your words. Once you write something on the blog, you can't take it back as easily, like you might be able to in person. Think about what you want to say, before you say it, and make sure that it is a productive contribution to the conversation that you started in class today.
1) Why do people stereotype others based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion. or any other reason? Where does this judgement come from?
2) What can we do about it?
I think that race is promoted and stereotyped because of the media because the it portrays a lot of things when they share stories on the news, radio, etc. Like if a robbing happens, if it were a white person, the news may make it big but it won't seem as big when they report it. But if it's a black person, they really make it seem as if the world is ending or as if its this national crime and he's suspected in 45 states. Yet they are the same crime. So, I think we are influenced by the media and social networking, especially since we live in a world of so much technology being used at one time.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely. For example, the representation of Jewish people being cheap derived from Nazi propoganda during the times of the Holocost and World War II, and that stereotype is still here today, all because of the media back in that time period. I think the use of technology simply furthers the use of stereotypes and just makes it more accesible to discriminate against other peoples.
DeleteI agree that the media does have some sort of bias that influences how people percieve others. The media could portray a race or religion in a negative way and people would make an assumption based on that.
DeleteI agree with everyone. I also think that the media now tries to make it humorous. By making it humorous more people are prone to use these stereo types. I believe that if the media stopped portraying discrimination in a funny way, less people would be stereotypical.
DeleteI think people stereotype because firstly, it's simply easy to group a bunch of people together and decide that they do all of the same things and act the same way, but I also think that we are some form of stereotypes ourselves. Everyone is grouped together and there is someone out there is similar to you. None of us are, and can be, truly individual. But it all starts with someone being different. When someone is different from the others around them, they are judged for whatever characteristic they have that makes them different, and it is then assumed that all people like that different person are exactly like them in every way. And yet while everyone stereotypes, no one believes that they themselves are a stereotype because stereotypes are looked down upon most of the time. And also while people conform constantly to society, everyone desires to be different. But if someone is different, they are judged. I think while it would be nice if everyone was more tolerant, it's impossible. Stereotypes are so integrated into our society that they are impossible to get rid of. Stereotypes can never be ignored, and they can never leave either.
ReplyDeleteI agree and I think that people should try not to fit into their stereotype, but a lot of the time it is where people feel the most comfortable and accepted, and everyone wants to be accepted. LIke in Catcher in the Rye, Holden really wanted to be different but he worried about judgement and in the Color of Water James didn't like the way black reporters were talking angrily about a white editor, but he didn't say anything because that would put him out of his comfort zone.
DeleteI agree with you that stereotypes can never leave and will never be ignored. But I disagree with you believing no one can be truly original. Yes, no one is different, almost everyone is the same, including in this era and society. But you can't say there won't be one original person. Because if there were no original people, there would be no judgement, so there would be no stereotypes. But there are, so originality exists.
DeleteI completely agree with you that people form stereotypes themselves. Sometimes the reason for stereotyping is because it's true, which is the saddest part of it. We also create stereotyping ourselves because of what we enforce through media and the news.
DeleteI think people stereotype others because they make assumptions based on the reputation of that race. If a particular race is known for talking a certain way or behaving a certain way, people automatically think that everyone of that race is going to be like that. I feel like people need to be more open-minded in order for this to stop. I also believe that the way you were brought up and the people you hang out with influence how you judge people. Sometimes when people are not exposed to others that are different than them, they make assumptions about those people based on what they've heard or know.
ReplyDeleteCan't we put part of the blame on ourselves. I do agree with you, but I think its much more complicated. We are not only shaped by assumptions but by interactions and experiences. One or two bad experiences with a certain race can make you forever stereotype them. Our views are also shaped by the people we interact with. There stereotypes will probably end up being extremely simular to your own.
DeleteI agree with you Stepanie but i also agree with Tamar that racism is something that we too act upon ourselves. I also would like to add that our parents do shape the way we act as well, and the exposure that we encounter with these ignorate people. So i feel as though us and our family/background play a role in how racist we end up being in life.
DeleteRacism is a huge issue. This way we think and act is shaped so strongly by the society we live in. Everyone is racist even if they do not know it or mean to. Kids need to grow up so that they are not surrounded by inequality and awful stereotypes. The sooner children no longer grow up surrounded by racism, the sooner equality will come, and men and women will always be equal. However, a lot of the blame is still on us. We are shaped so much by our childhood, and the views we are brought up on. It is amazing how little of our thinking is truly ours, not just the opinions of people we surrond ourselves with. The most important step to ending racism is acknowledging our own racism views and opinions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, everyone is racist in some way and we need to acknowledge our own racism. It is an issue that everyone avoids, but I think it would be helpful to talk about it more to find out why we are thinking that way.
DeleteI completely agree. Everyone is racist, when I made my comment in class it was hard to admit it, but it was true and I think everyone has those moments even if you consider yourself not racist. The problem is, its almost impossible to stop these feelings. Its not someones fault it they get those feelings its just because they world that we live in is racist whether we like it or not. We are growing up around stereotypes and racist pop culture. So self consciously we are becoming racist.
DeleteRacism is still around the world to this day. For some people, race is something to be proud of, others is something to judge or to be judged by. No matter what there will still be racism in the world, yes its a bad thing, but its still going to be there every morning you wake up. Its the same thing with bullying, you may wish it wasn't there and it could be stopped. But face the facts, you cannot stop bullying no matter how many protests or whatever you do, the same with racism. There was only one time there was true equality and humans ruined it for themselves. People are to blame for the fact racism is here, if society never depended on race or money, there would be no need for any of these issues.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with what you are saying.In the beginning we were all equal, and racism is something that we as humans have created and brought into this world.
DeleteI think that part of the judgement is how we are brought up. Not necessarily by our parents or family or friends, but by media and the things around us. Things like the news and movies and tv that we see from a very young age leave stereotypes in our minds that are hard to get rid of. Is it possible to completely stop these thoughts from coming into our heads? Often they are quick thoughts that you don't even have control over and you don't want to be thinking them. Is there really any way to block these thoughts from ever entering our head? I think that at this point in our lives, it is hard, and if at a young age children were brought up where the idea that everyone is equal and you shouldn't judge based on background, skin color, ect., there would be less racism.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I think racism is unavoidable, but I also think people try to fulfill these stereotypes, so it's very hard not to ever have a stereotypical version of a race in your head. Through media and the world around us, we are taught racism, whether on purpose or not.
DeleteI ABSOLUTELY POSITIVELY AGREEEEEEE! we were brought up in a wall or generation that we believe anything and we cant control it sometimes.
Deletei agree with what you're saying, i definetly think that the media has an impact and should be more diverse as to the positions people take based on ethnicity i think that a start to ending stereotypes in media is by first adding more diverse roles, to the jobs or actions people may take, portrayed through movies or even news.
DeletePeople stereotype because they grow up around so much racism. People are racist without even realizing it. They become this way because they are surrounded by people making assumptions and jokes about race without even noticing it hurts people. People don't understand that there is a line between hurtful and funny. Even though we say we've gotten past the point where we don't treat people different because of how they look we still do. I believe there will always be something that someone says or does that will be hurtful to another person in the future. We are already to far gone into treating people differently and saying/thinking comments to stop. I'm sure that in the past if there was no problem between people's race we wouldn't have any stereotypes now. Everywhere you go someone will always have a comment about your race and how you act or speak. We know it's not right but there is no way to stop it from creeping into our thought or no way to stop it from coming out of our mouths.
ReplyDeleteI think what you are saying that there is no way to stop it is absolutely 100% true. However, I do believe that it can be lessened with education. Some people simply talk with ignorance and it is because they are not informed of how people might feel. This is definitely something that more people should know about and although many do, the more the better.
DeleteStereotyping is a big problem in society today. Whether we like to believe it or not, everyone is judgmental and everyone jumps to conclusions about people based on information that they have gathered from the media, from their parents, and from past situations. Then again, I believe that stereotypes come from something that is somewhat true, although they are usually exaggerated. Of course, everyone is different and you cannot say that every person of one race behaves in the same way, but some people actually do fit their stereotypes and this confirms the stereotype even more. As to what we can do about it, I feel like most people feel guilty talking about racism and stereotyping because we all do it, so it is important to acknowledge that everyone does it at some point. Avoiding the topic, like many people do, will get you nowhere.
ReplyDeleteThe fathom of racism is an issue that is inescapable unless it is dealt with head on. I feel that human beings are born into the world being so judgmental and stereotypical because there was a foundation of racism that was built upon. From the racism, ethnicity, gender, and religion was able to be stereotyped in the cruel eyes of the media. However, today, I feel like racism has gotten a lot better and is not as protruding as it was back in the days of James's time. I feel like people just need to realize what they are doing if they're thinking in a racist fashion because NOW I believe it is sub-conscience. I believe we just nee to train our minds to NOT CARE about how a person looks on the outside. People need to realize that by wondering what race a person is, will not change who they are or what their ethics are. "You are your own person" and nothing will change that no matter what the situation is.
ReplyDeleteI agree, the notion of racism is built in our world over generations and were born into it. Yes, we're also definitely capable of accepting race easily because we live in an extremely diverse community. However, there still is media influence around us that creates a stereotypical background for race and we as individuals aren't capable of controlling it.
DeletePeople stereotype others based on race, religion, ethnicity,etc. because that is what we have all been exposed to. People don't judge others, I think, because of what they have done,look like, or wear, they judge them based on what they saw as a child and what they have been exposed to. Bringing this back to our previous discussion about where our identity comes from, I think that what our parents do or have been taught to do influences how they act and show their kids to act. I also think that racism now is a big deal becasue people think of it as a joke because of what we have been told, show, or how the subject has been addresed, especially through the media. Racsim is only a biig thing, becaue we have made it a big thing and because we complain about it, but continue to act on it through our nieve ways.
ReplyDeleteNothing can be done about racsim because it is found in every cultue, whether its people making fun of their own culture/race, or people frowning upon it yet still acting on it. Racism has been around for many years and it isn't something that can be put away because of the amount of space it takes up in peoples lives. I think that instead of trying to stop racsim we the people should try to change our ways and help others break out of habits that they have been exposed to.
Stereotypes are a really offensive and a negative way to look at people, but are commonly used today. Everyone forms opinions as they grow up, but they cannot form opinions without being influenced by things around them. People are accustomed to what they are use to and those that stray from the norm are stereo typed because they lack similarities. Also, if one is brought up to be racist, one will be racist. People tend to follow ideas and beliefs because they do not want to be different. Many form/follow these ideas and beliefs from the media. Everyone sees the media. Many times stereo types are suppose to be humorous. This is what really causes people to continue stereo typing.
ReplyDeleteI don't really think that we can do anything to stop it. Everyone judges whether they mean to or not. We make assumptions because it's easy to group people and make a general summary of who they are rather than figuring out who each one is individually. We do it to make ourselves feel secure.
I agree, I think many times people are racist just because thats all they know. Also, they want to feel included, even if they are apart of something they don't believe in. I think believing in what you were raised to believe goes beyond racism though, I think it applies to everything because people just believe what they know, even if thats all they know.
DeletePeople stereotype others based on their race, religion, ethnicity, etc. because the world around them does. They grow up with a family who does that, or the people around them do. They hear stereotypes in the media, and on the news. I think the reason people believe many stereotypes because usually they are believe by people not only of their own race, or religion, but also of others races, and even sometimes the races of the people who are being stereotyped. I think the best way to fix this problem is to recognize what were doing, when we think something about someone based on how they look. However, I think that when people usually stereotype someone they don’t know, they don’t just base it on the color of their skin, they also base it on how they dress, and the way they present themselves which we can also stereotype. Also, I think that it’s a misconception that people only hang out with people who are of similar race. Although, I do think that people tend to hang out with people who fit similar profiles of the way they are raised because that is what they know.
ReplyDeleteUnderstanding. That is a major component of our everyday lives as humans. Most of us if not all of us, always want to understand what is going on, how it happened, and what is going to happen next. We always want to have some sort of an explanation. Now this isn't for everyone, but often people will stereotype someone else so they can better understand why they look a certain way or why they are behaving a certain way. These "explanations" can often be looked at as "racist" or "offensive" or "cruel" or "ignorant." And often this leads to conflict and sometimes even violence. In The Color of Water, James often stereotypes people to feel better about his situation or feel more comfortable with his understanding of the world. To be completely honest, I don't think that there is anyway for racism to be totally erased from the world, however I do think that there is a way to lessen it by making people aware of what they are saying and how it might affect the people around them. In my opinion there is only one way for this to be possible... education.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree, I think it is impossible for people to stop judging. With education people might start to realize the harm of their judgements and not form prejudicial opinions.
DeleteI believe the reason people make judgments is that we feel the need to know things, and when we don't know anything, we need to make an inference... It just feels uncomfortable to be clueless about something. I think the reason for basing it on any one of those categories is because they are easy to spot, and consequently are direct stereotypes. Its easier. The specific stereotypes come from society and how we group people together. When you are not used to a different kind of person, their differences start to really stand out.. and the differences we identify as stereotypes tend to be really simple. Overall, its not a bad thing to make judgments... its something we cant control and will do no matter what. I think we just have to be aware that we do make judgments, and they might not always be accurate. Also, I believe people will never stop making judgements, but you should be able to recognize when you've made a judgement. That way, you don't turn that judgement into an opinion.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely and I also think that stereotyping is something that is done naturally by humans. It helps fill in the blanks when you are confused about a person.
DeletePeople stereotype others because it is used in the most popular thing in the world, the media. The media stereotypes everything according to race. For example, in the Batman Theater Shooting the guy who had done it was white, so the media said he had a "mental disorder." If someone from the Middle East had done the same exact thing even though that person is an official United States citizen he would be labeled as a terrorist. Two people can commit the same crime, but the media will stereotypically label each person according to their race. The media decides on how they want the story to be told by only including certain details that they want and not the whole story.
ReplyDeleteI think that in order to stop stereotypical and racist stories from airing is to make the news people/anyone who is involved publicly in the situation to swear to always tell the truth, nothing but the truth and the whole truth. This will let the viewers know exactly what is happening and can make a dissuasion on their own instead of having one already made for them. If the stories didn't only show details that support one side then a lot of racism and stereotypes will stop.
In personal my personal experience the media played a big part of people stereotyping me because I'm from the Bronx. I went to a conference in Washington two years ago, where there were people from every state. We were separated into smaller groups and had to introduce ourselves to the small group. The people stayed quite and listened to every single person as they talked. When it was my turn to speak I did exactly what everyone else had done, state your name, age and state/city. When I said I was from the Bronx the mood of the group completely changed. The people began to make guns using their fingers, climb on chairs, sag their pants and even twisted their hats so that the sun visor was facing the wrong way. People who had never set foot in the Bronx were pretending to be from the Bronx, because that's what they saw in the media.
People stereotype mostly based on what they were brought up on because what they grow up believing is what usually sticks with them their whole life. Our society knowingly and unknowingly promotes racism, through stereotypical media, (comedy or serious racism) and because sometimes stereotypes are true. The saddest thing about racism is sometimes the stereotypes are true and they the mass quantities of one group doing one thing lead people to believe that anyone in a group will do that one thing. People would say it's not irrational to assume that after 50 times of trying to fix something and it doesn't work, that the 51's time it still wouldn't work. In real life, if 50 people do one thing people would assume that the 51's person would do that too. The only way to end racism is for everyone themselves to change so they can be known not for what they're characterized as, but as what is special about them and what makes them unique.
ReplyDeleteI think that's what makes it hard. People would rather go with this cycle and be the 51st person to do the bad thing rather than be the person to go against the cycle. If they go against the cycle then they are met with so much more oppression than if they go with it.
DeleteWhat is also difficult about being the 51st person is that stereotypes are not always negative. For example, "all Asian kids are smart". If it was assumed that I had a greater intelligence because of my race I of course would find it ridiculous and demeaning to be categorized by such an impersonal trait, but also a bit honored, honestly. And when the stereotyping existing around you is negative, breaking from it is seen as a disconnect from anyone with similar roots to you. That because of an acting you felt morally appropriate, you "aren't a real man", or are "not really (said person's race)".
DeleteI really exhausted a lot of what I had to say in class, so sorry if this just feels like a repeat episode of the Max On Racism show. Anyway. I do believe that racism is really how you look at it. Other races, that may have been criticized for their race, have more room to be racist. For example, because of slavery, and general putting down of other races, white people are seen as people who may be more racist, in some peoples eyes. Yes, there have been terrible things done because of someones race, but it's almost racist to call another race more racist than another. Wait, that's kind of confusing. Whatever. It made sense in my head.
ReplyDeleteNow, to questions:
1) Did all the kids get full ride scholarships?
2) Were they all that successful, or did some just have sub-par careers?
3) What is James more successful at, musician or reporter?
Ok, here it goes... I think racism is based on ignorence, prior knowledge, and someones actions. People sterotype each other because of the media or what they we told when they were younger. Not all black people know how to dougie, not all white females know how to cheerlead, and not all white males play soccer or video games. We sometimes base our thoughts off of observations and things we see in the movies. I dont think anyone would be defined as "racist" if everyone had self control. We sometimes see Arab people or Jewish people and automatically think of the whole 911 thing when that was just one persons actions. If everyone would act the way they are suppose to act then nobody would have to judge eachother.
ReplyDeleteI agree. That's what I was saying, that it could be because of the media , putting all of this stuff in your head. And it is based on what they were told when they were younger. People jump to conclusion, based on what they've seen in that race, and I agree we do need self-control.
DeletePeople stereotype others based on their ethnicity, race, religion etc. because it is not taken as seriously as before. Now a days, racist comments are made into jokes and people laugh at them. In the 1900s, racial jokes were not common and people really took it personally. In modern day, even though a racial comments offends people, the media is making it acceptable which is wrong. I think that people judge other races because of their experiences with them. It is not right to think that since one person from a specific race did something wrong against you, everyone that is of that race is bad. All humans
ReplyDeleteI think people stereotype others because rather than having to think about people as their own, individual thinking units, we can just stick them in a group and hope nobody will stand out. If standing out is a bad thing and the stereotype is there in a way to almost make people feel like they need to stick with the crowd, then why do people do radical, idiotic, or brilliant things? People always base their thoughts of others off experiences they have had before, then that's what / who they are to you. I think it actually hinders people from being a standout that could be beneficial. As much as we like to stick with the group, we also want to stick out and not just be another nobody that is part of the other 25mil nobodies that "just exist" in the big wide world. People don't want to be different because they will get a different response from society and yet they may be what we need the most to grow but stereotypes bring a certain expectancy from us. When we stick with those, whether we mean to or not, we go nowhere.
ReplyDeleteWe stereotype because of past experiences that we've had. Based on previous things we've witnessed through interaction, media or stories we will jump to conclusions about a situation. I think that our brains when presented with a situation when the person is unknown immediately fills up that unknown with stereotypes based on how this person looks and acts. I don't think that we can control these stereotypes. We use our past experiences to make judgements, I think this comes from our animal instincts to survive. In order to survive we have to be able to think on our feet and make fast decisions to either run or fight and I think that this has transfered to every day life situations. We still will immediately judge a situation and a person based on past experience. The stereotypes aren't only bad but they are still stereotypes. I see know way in which we can control the way our brain jumps to conclusions, we can only not act on these first instincts. If we don't act on these instincts and judge a person then we can overcome our stereotypes.
ReplyDeleteIf we are able to cure ourselves of stereotyping I think a start would be to stop labeling everything and associating everything with race. If we stop saying "Why do you talk white?" or "Why do you dress black?" then we can make progress on the fight against racism. If we stop labeling certain things with race than we can break down the racial barrier and take away racism. Instead of talking white it will be talking proper. I do feel that we are closer in NYC especially to breaking this racial barrier down.
What happens to Dee-dee?
Does her dads wife stay with him?
What happened to her old black boyfriend?
I agree with you on some instances, but also disagree with the majority. While we do create stereotypes from media and stories and etc, I think its up to the person who listens if they chose to use that and judge other people. Its true the brain is suppose to dissect a situation quickly,its up to the person if they are strong enough to think past that and analyze a situation depending on you think the person you are judging would want to be judged.
DeleteI completely agree with you that we somehow have to cure ourselves of labeling, we first have to look where it starts.
And that is at home.
I think that people stereotype other people by their race, religion, ethnicity and so on,because it's kind of like a joke, and this could be blamed on the media. There are shows on TV with comedians saying racist things about other races or even their own race. And a lot of people think it's funny so they pass it on and say it to some one else, who may be offended. Or some times it could be based on what people are used to seeing in other races, so they think that every body in that race does the same thing. Well we could stop following what the media is telling us. Like for example, no offense to Kevin Hart or his supporters, but I remember once when my best friend watched a Kevin hart video, she went around saying what he said about Black people, and they actually took it serious, and before they were really nice to her, but at that moment they wanted to beat the sense out of her. And all I could tell her is " see what the media does to you, it get's you beat up". I think she learned her lesson on how serious those races "funny" words could be.
ReplyDeleteI think that people make stereotypes of people for several reasons. People are raised to judge others because it helps protect them from danger that some people could do to them. However this isn't always the case because sometimes people could seem mean but are really nice. I think that making stereotypes is something that humans naturally do it's just that it's gotten worse over time. It used to be that stereotypes were used to hurt people know it seems like they're more so for entertainment. I don't really think that there's much that we can do about this except accept the fact that stereotypes will never leave but can lessen in having power over people. I feel like media play a really big part in stereotyping. They are always portraying certain people in certain ways, which affect the audiences opinions.
ReplyDeleteI believe that people like what they are familiar with or can relate with. People inherently are drawn to their own kind, and people are afraid of what is unfamiliar to them. Naturally people will find other races and cultures that are foreign to them to be a threat to them. The things we can do about it, is visit other cultures, people who live in cities with people of different ethnic background learn how to get along with each other because they are so close to each other, they mix in the subway, work, school daily activities, in which they cannot isolate themselves. Personal experiences would be, in my middle school, which was very diverse, where kids would sort of brand others by their race or religion.
ReplyDeleteI think race and racism is bred into us from when we are very young. We are condition into drawing parallels and differences between races and ethnicity and gender, that everyone is slightly racist in their own way, myself included. To me, its broken into who can relate with one another, and how can you alienate someone else for whatever reason. Growing up, I've dealt with stereotypes that are associated with brown people, and all of them are untrue for me. While some stereotypes are true, I don't think people should use it as a shield and embark on it to establish the difference between a person. And also, people create stereotypes because of what they hear and the silly media that is used to create a silly persona for a particular race, gender, etc. When people see something so broadly casted, like on the radio or tv, or newspaper, people begin to think its okay to react and think this way. And I blame it a lot on social media. Those slightly racist jokes you make on a social media website can be interpreted in multiple ways by multiple people, and this is when you get something of a "group think". And its considered to be okay because everyone else thinks its fine because they simply think if everyone else does it, I can do it.
ReplyDeleteIn a perfect world, grandparents and parents would teach their children that there is no distinction between race or gender, and everyone would be considered equal. But to achieve this perfect world, we first must be willing to accept that we are racist in a way, we do stereotype, and think to ourselves, " How can we move forward, and create a judgmental free zone where everyone is equal?"
Even if we are not growing up in a time period that Ruth or James grew up in we still experience it everyday. Of course now it is not so much on a political level (less so) but on a social level. We see even in a diverse city such as NYC, teenagers generally like to stick with there own race, but is that racist? No, they stick with their race usually because its easy not because they don’t want to be with other races. As I said before, we usually see race as an issue on a social standpoint but there is one issue that I can think of that has to do with a political standpoint. In NYC a lot of neighborhoods are formed by a certain race. Some are predominately one race because that is where they went to when they immigrated. There are other neighborhoods that are not like that. Harlem is a predominately black neighborhood with a strong sense of culture and a rich history. One of the issues today in Harlem is the public schools; they are drastically underfunded compared to public schools in other neighborhoods. Why is that? I personally have a few guesses but I would like to hear your ideas…
ReplyDeleteYou are making a valid point about about the racial neighborhoods and underfunding to schools, but I am going to have to disagree with you about people sticking to their own racial groups. I have many friends from other races, probably more so then friends from my own race. This may be because I live in NYC, one of the most diverse city's in the world, but I feel like people are more comfortable around other races then ever before in society. I am not saying that racism isn't still an important issue, just that people are comfortable being around members of other races.
DeletePeople stereotype others based on their previous observations of people that may resemble who they are presented with.This judgment comes from stereotypes that are all around us. These stereotypes are engraved in our minds by how we interact with one another, and mass media. We can't help the snap judgments and the thoughts that creep into our mind, but we are able to control how we respond to these judgements. If we acknowledge that these judgements are wrong, and aren't necessarily true, we will slowly stop believing them and giving into stereotypes. Unfortunately, stereotypes and racism is a problem that humans are always going to have to face because its something that is so hard to exterminate.Racism is engraved in our minds, and once something is in our mind, there is no way for it to completely leave. We can solve this by being aware of how we respond to our judgments and stereotyping of others, so our thoughts won't become our actions and our character.
ReplyDeleteI agree, people stereotype from what they have seen before and this mostly comes from the people who surround us. I also think that judgement has a lot to do with all the stereotypes and by us recognizing that this is wrong it would hopefully start decreasing.
DeleteI think people stereotype because they see what is being portrayed in the media, and by constantly seeing the same race being portrayed the same way you begin to start thinking people within that race are like what they are being portrayed as. Everyone is just a tad bit racist because we say things that we think are funny but in reality it isn't, it could hurt someone. I also think that we tend to stay within our own race. To at least try to solve this issue we could not be so judgmental- because people who seem mean could be really nice, so we have to be open minded. Also, we should try to get a better understanding of other people from other races since this would give us a better chance of getting along with other races. I have had personal experiences with racism but I think its mainly because of what other people see from the media and they think we are all snotty and so on and so forth.
ReplyDeleteMany stereotypes are formed around truths. Statistically, more crimes are committed by people of African-American and Latino race. The only reason stereotypes exist is because they hold some basis in truth. Comedy is formed from stereotypes because it can be. If these judgments did not hold a certain degree of truth, they would simply be illogical, and lack comedic appeal. In uncomfortable situations, someone may make a joke, simply to ease the tension. The same technique has been applied to the race/gender/ethnicity/religion dilemma. Jokes made on these topics could not be made unless those of the parties involved saw the blanketing involved. To see the humor, all of us had to first see the equalities. Judgment on the other hand, comes from ignorance, as well as instinct. Not instinct as in “human nature”, but what we were raised to believe, or maybe even just exposed to. Because judgment is a learned behavior, it can also be un-learned. Exposing ourselves to the issue at hand, being up front about it, and asking questions are all vital steps to understanding the different plains of people in society. Frank admittance to our ignorance, as well as a looser reaction from the receiving end will move this issue forward. The humor spread so commonly is humorous because of its obvious ridiculousness. Because we are able to see this ridiculousness, we show that we understand the truth of genders, ethnicities, races, and religions.
ReplyDeleteStereotypes are a basic element of out society today. They categorize people based on their race, religion, or ethnicity into one big stereotype. These, for the most part, are not true for every person of that group. From an early age, one is "taught" these harsh opinions by his/her peers and the media. The media plays a key role in promoting these stereotypes that would probably dissipated in society by now. I feel like the main reason people still use stereotypes is because it is simply easier to go along with what other people, and the media are saying, rather then be a non-conformist and reject these biased statements. These stereotypes are also commonly used for comedic purposes. I have many Asian friends who constantly call themselves smart and blame their intelligence on the fact they are Asian. They are of course joking, but this could be perceived as them being racist towards their own race, which is typically accepted. We can try to stop making these judgements about people and even ourselves based on what our peers, the media, and society tells us. Unfortunately, the sad truth is that our brains will probably continue to make these snap judgements until we fell no need to judge people at all based on thier race, ethnicity, or religion.
ReplyDeletePeople stereotype others based on race, gender, ethnicity or religion. This is because from a young age people are brought up in a world where we base our assumptions on the way people look or act. Even though this may be a wrong thing to do, we can't simply block out our thoughts because these views are all around us. For instance, the media in todays world plays an important role in the way we distinguish race, gender, ethnicity or religion. The media controls our views on the world and continuously provokes either unfavorable or positive views in the society we live in. We can't certainly avoid race, gender, ethnicity or religion because it's who we are ad we can't change that. However, when we see or meet someone, we shouldn't jump to conclusions because whomever that person may be is not the person who you think they are. What I noticed was in a place like New York City, race, gender, ethnicity or religion aren't main issues that concern us because we're so overly diverse. However, in some places in the world, the people are so used to seeing one of the same race or religion that they may be a little more judgmental or stereotypical. This is because they arrant used to interacting with a person of another race or religion and also may not be able to look past that and see the persons true morals.
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