Racial Stereotypes

From Stereotype Out, a group on Figment.com


FIRST OF ALL! I mean in NO way to offend ANYONE because of their race. I'm merely using certain races as examples that people often stereotype certain kinds of people by. If you (the reader) feel at all offended by this, tell me so and I will change some of the wording/content or even will take it down. Phew, it was good to get that off by chest.

You are in a classroom. It's new, so you don't know anyone in the class. The teacher suddenly announces, "Alright! We're going to have a project due at the end of the year. Partner yourselves up in pairs of two!" It's a project having to do with science, which you are horrible at. (Perhaps not really, but let's pretend.) So you look at your classmates. There's the smart kid, the gangster kid, and the ditzy kid. Who are you going to pick? Easy, the smart one.

Okay! So you have used your mad skills of vivd imagination to think out the scenario, I'm sure. Now think back to the classmates. What do they look like? What did the smart kid look like? What did the gangster kid look like? What did the ditzy kid look like? Be honest.

Now, this is where it can get kind of personal. Remember, I'm not trying to offend anyone! This is just what people tend to stereotype others as.

The smart kid - He's Asian, right? He wears glasses. He's quiet. The ganster kid - He's African American. He wears baggy clothes and listens to his MP3 all of the time. The ditzy kid - she's white. She has blond hair, a girly taste in clothes, and tend to wear a lot of makeup.

Don't be alarmed if I hit targets. Nine out of ten people are going to think this way. Now, since you have been honest with yourself, let's think of why this happens.

First idea that comes to mind is that from the media. TV shows, movies, entertainment in general. In the movies, you're never going to find an Asian gangster. It just doesn't happen. You don't find ditzy African American girls, either. Sometimes you find smart white girls, but they never wear glasses, and they're usually not quiet.

We often take this and apply it. Sure, it's not right, but it happens, let's be honest. We practice it, and we get used to it. Remember, stereotyping is really, really, really easy to fall into because it's so subtle. Most stereotypes originate in truth, sadly. There's a bit of truth. Most people will take small truths and exaggerate them so that it seems as if it applies to everyone of that race. That's what makes stereotypes so easy to believe, because the grounding base is often in truth but it grows so fast that it gets mutated over time. (Thank you, person reading over my shoulder. AKA, my best friend is here with me today. Say hello, best friend! Note: she actually said hello. With my prompting. Cough.)

Now, here's a classic way to prove how common stereotyping people by there race is. If a white man walks towards you on the street, you're going to keep walking. But if a African Amercian man walks towards you on a street, you're going to cross over to the other side. Sure, if the guy has a gun and he's walking towards you, you want to get out of there. But that's common sense, not stereotyping. There's a line between the two.

Actually, a lot of people in a certain race don't fit their stereotype. Even if some do, then not all can be summed up in the one stereotype. Remember, people, we're leaving stereotyping to desserts, not people. If you were to be summed up in one word, could you find one? I THINK NOT.

So what happens when people get stereotyped by their race? Here's what happens: (Let's call our subject Taffy again, shall we?) Taffy is stereotyped because of his/her race. Then, people start reacting to Taffy a certain way. There's a whole load of peer pressur on Taffy, so Taffy starts to conform. Taffy's potential to be outside the box is stifled. And with time, Taffy becomes even stronger in his/her racial stereotype, hiding his/her true potential.

Yeah, not a great situation. So don't stereotype people by their race. You can have common sense without stereotyping. And don't let yourself be stereotyped by your race. Be outside the box.


B.C.