Note: This was my first paper done when I first started college back in 2013. It is not perfect, but I still stand by many of the points that I make here. I feel much of it is relevant to some of the prevalent issues in today’s society.
For much of lives we continually accept the information that is brought onto us through the media and our everyday interactions. There are some aspects of our lives that become “common sense.” Our observations and perpetuations through the media of what is “typical” creates a false reality that does not represent our lives in an accurate way.
There is not one person to blame. All of us contribute to the imbalanced expectations for people in society. Whether it be the models in our advertisements that we deem to be attractive, or the stereotypes related to races, gender, and sexuality. Discrimination applies to every single person. Everyone has come across it in some way. Though often times the way it is distinguished is much subtler than one would think.
Why is it that black men have a higher incarceration percentage rather than any other person in society? David Tepstra, one author of the article “The Influence Of The Gender And Race Of The Judge And The Type Of Discrimination Charge On Court Case Outcomes“, notes that a judges often struggle with even being aware of their biases. It is not simply a matter of the people involved being racist or prejudice…at least not intentionally. It is a matter of people’s perception of the world around them. This is the root cause of people’s racism.
Some aspects of racism seem so true, so valid, and so compelling that people will dismiss the other parts of a person and key on the part of them that makes them most distinct. Most of these people won’t see their observations as racism. Their gender, their skin color, and their sexuality are some of the most distinguishable characteristics of a person, and these distinguishable characteristics are easy for the average person to use as an illogical reasoning behind associating a perceived negative action with someone. Jacqueline Nelson illustrates this point very well in her academic journal, “Australian Journal of Social Issues.”
“In this view, understanding place-defending and the denial of racism as performances in place requires an analysis of place-defending not simply as an individual act of denial, but with reference to broader social ideologies.” (Nelson 4)
The reality is that everyone is equal in their morals and ethics from the beginning. No one person is naturally good nor bad. Their physical characteristics can not, and never will impart any information about their mental characteristics. They are just that… people. One may think this is an obvious assumption, but often our expectations of a person can be skewed based on their appearance is part our humanity whether we would like it to be or not. Awareness gives you the power of choice though. Awareness of racism and discrimination is what grants you a tolerance and acceptance of any one with any distinguishable feature different from your own. “The discourse of tolerance is made possible by the denial of racism.” (Nelson 7)
Though this issue transcends just racism. The defense of discrimination against sexuality, racism, and anything of the sort undermines the world-wide effort to diminish the negative discrimination associated with them. There is rarely any person who is proud of their discrimination, but that does not change the fact discrimination is hurtful to both a person and a society.
Many of the same problems of racism apply to sexuality. Workplace discrimination, hostility from others, and unreasonable expectations plague the gay community. There is often a defense on religious grounds, and a silver-lining acceptance of the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual) community. Many people will claim that they are accepting as long as it is not publicized in everyday life or the media. However, avoiding the integration of the LGBT in society prevents the normalization of different sexualities in society. Accepting it in this fashion does almost nothing to help the greater goal of overcoming discrimination.
An awareness of the unaware is what will help the society progress. An analysis regarding the attitudes people have toward the LGBT shows that “Contact with LGBT individuals has been shown to be a significant correlate of attitudes toward LGBT individuals.” (Worthen 289) Supporting the integration of all aspects of life that are currently more susceptible to discrimination is one of the most important steps you can take to creating a more open and welcoming society for all people.
Using both the media, and early education we can, and in some cases already are improving our views as a society towards other races, genders, and sexualities. In a study regarding the perception of discrimination in children, Frosso Matti-Stefanidi notes that “The demeaning messages inherent in discriminatory experiences threaten the formation of a secure identity and are likely to undermine their mental health.” There are still issues ongoing with attaining acceptance of others in their entirety within early childhood schooling, we can see there is an encouraging increase in acceptance. Though bullies and hate speech will still occur in schools, there is an adamant defense of the victims. Both students and faculty alike defend and take action for those that are demeaned in any way. With this we can eliminate group discrimination in the easily mendable minds of children.
One of the more pressing issues of overcoming discrimination occurs in our everyday media. Television, feature-length films, online articles, online videos, and newspapers all play a significant part in shaping our world views. Studies have conveyed the idea that students of color experience a distinct pressure to assimilate. (Lewis, Chester, & Forman 2000) Every piece of media has a message, both explicit and implicit. While some may read certain media text’s for its explicit meaning, the implied ideas of contemporary media can isolate some people for feeling different or out of place. With the television show, “Modern Family”, there is an explicit meaning of acceptance of gay couples and lifestyle, but an implicit meaning of the expectation of what gay people should be. The gay characters express characteristics such as over-dramatism, weak physical-strength, and a variety of other stereotypes. This is just one example of a way in which we create an expectation for what people are and should be. Because our expectations are created in this way, many people don’t realize that their own discrimination is, in fact, discrimination. They believe it is just the reality of our society.
Our lifestyles and how they are presented are in need of a deep analysis. Every person should work to improve their own awareness of the reasons why racism and discrimination are defended, the implicit meanings of our media today and how they contribute to our perception of the world around us.