Stereotyping is a gradual and treacherous process of labeling people in rigid and stifling categories. Some prevalent stereotypes are:
- all white Americans are obese, and dim-witted
- all Mexicans are drug dealers and come to the United States illegally
- all people from England are rude and snobbish
- all Blacks are good at basketball
- all Jews are greedy
These stereotypical attitudes are not only hurtful, they are also wrong. People from each culture are generally good, unique and entitled to their own characteristics. However, stereotyping leads people to be driven by hate or fear.
For this assignment, you are challenged to screen your attitudes, values and personal experiences to find a group, culture or gender whom you have stereotyped for a long time. You will be asked to break out of your entrenched stereotype. You must conduct a personal interview or extensive research to break out of your stereotype. Share your findings in a 200 word response, the comments section below. This assignment is due by Friday, April 15th, 2016. Good Luck!
Following are some stereotypical ideas to get you started:
- all teenagers are rebels
- all elderly people are unintelligent
- all Arabs and Muslims are terrorists
- Chinese people only eat sushi
- all boys are messy and unclean
- all girls like makeup and fashion
Everybody has a different stereotype about different people, there's no denial in that. However, these stereotypes are a misconception we have made out to be. You cannot describe or portray someone to be a terrorist, uneducated, a rebel etc. just because a small amount of people from that race or religion may have done something wrongful. Some of my family members tend to think that hanging around black people or living in a neighborhood with many black people is a bad thing just because they portray them to be uneducated and choose their futures to be in a drug dealing situation. Despite that, this is not true because many people who were colored are successful like Barack Obama who is the president of America since 2009. He graduated from Harvard Law School and after many obstacles, he became the president. John H. Johnson was a successful businessman and publisher. We also have Nelson Mandela who was the first black president of South Africa and he overthrew a pro-apartheid. In conclusion, we should not let these misconceptions and misapprehension deceive our minds to think badly of people. We have a great example of Imam Abu Hanifa, avoided gossip and slander; and he only talked good about people even if there was bad to talk about them. He also talked good about his enemies. These are the characteristics we should try and adapt into our live and leave these misconceptions against different nations, religions and people.
ReplyDelete- Rabia.
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ReplyDeleteAll Muslims are terrorists.
ReplyDeleteJust because someone of a particular nationality, religion, color, or race, are terrorists, that doesn't mean that the entire religion is involved with terrorists. That does NOT mean all muslims are terrorists. Another thing is that, the majority of non-Muslims do not consider all Muslims terrorists. According to the FBI (updated November, 2015), 94% of terrorist attacks carried out in the United States from 1980 to 2005 have been by non-Muslims. This means that an American terrorist suspect was over nine times more likely to be a non-Muslim than a Muslim. Shaykh Muhammad bin ‘Abdallah al-Sabil said: “Any attack on innocent people is unlawful and contrary to shari’a (Islamic law). … Muslims must safeguard the lives, honor and property of Christians and Jews. Attacking them contradicts shari’a.” This means, if any Muslim hurts any other Muslim or any other religious folk, that Muslim is responsible for a huge sin in the hereafter, were all of us will be reckoned, and every Muslim has to believe in that. “Terrorism has no religion”, says Nash Jenkins (an atheist). Terrorism can be done by any religion, so why point towards Islam, only? All Muslims are not terrorists, Islam does not support terrorism, it strictly contradicts.
Many people think that students who drop out of school have no future. This world is filled with people judging other based on their appearances and rumours. Everyone in life judged a person at least in their mind. If you heard a boy in your building dropped out of school, what would you think of him? I’m certain that you think of him as a loser, he wouldn’t be a successor in life and he has no future. But you don’t know what’s happened in his life. Maybe he just can’t learn the way other students learn, or he is incredibly smart in his own way, or he is talented in something extraordinary. There is a man who is completely disabled, but he is a scientist. Other scientists place this type of device on his head, which shows them what new idea he has in mind. Another example of a man is; he was dropped out of school, was told to leave the school and never return by his teacher, and his name is Albert Einstein. We judge people to the extent that we decide their future for them. We have no right to judge anyone even if we know about their life.
ReplyDelete-Imaza Mohamed
203 words
Honestly, i feel there is a line between being racist, sexist, homophobic, etc. and making a quick judgement based on appearance. But I have a question. Say you need to carry a package to the 12th floor of a building. A man and a women walk by. Who do you choose? Obviously the man (unless the women is more masculine or whatever but a majority aren't) This isn't being sexist really, you are just making a fast assumption based on your situation and what suits you best. Sometimes you just do not have time to "get to know the person". That is hard to understand. In a simple situation like this, are you really going to ask the women "hey, you are petite and seem like you cant lift a heavy box, but let me get to know you first!" no? I think that's being stubborn, and not only that but you are trying to make yourself seem like you do not socially categorize others.so we shouldn't judge people based on how they look etc.
ReplyDelete-Sameeha Patel
Society has altered the perception of people increasingly, in their perceptions of alternate kinds of people, different from themselves. One common misconception is the idea of girls and women, not being able to play sports. Originally, women were thought of as being “feminine”, and still are; they are expected to be cooking, cleaning, raising kids, and wearing dresses. In the past, women were restricted from participating in physical activities, until the mid 1800s, when women were participating in mild activities (dancing and ice skating.) After the Civil War, women were gifted with the chance of being in organized sports, such as archery, golf, and croquet. However, sports like basketball and soccer were not allowed, because they required heavier physical activity, and women weren’t allowed to take part in those, because they had to protect their reproductive systems. However, it was when the bicycle was invented, before the end of the 19th century, that women began to revolute in involvement in physical activities. They invented a looser kind of dress to be able to ride bikes, and it was this change that allowed women to pursue interests in more aggressive sports. Nowadays, women can participate in the Olympics, which goes to show, that women can play sports.
ReplyDelete- Fatima Azhar
“You just had a blonde moment”, a phrase many individuals tend to use to indicate that someone had said something unintelligent. Blondes in general are said to be fake, dumb, and complete airheads. Simply because this is how they are portrayed in the media, to assume that a blondes IQ is lower than the average brunette is very unlikely considering the dumbest blondes seen on TV are artificially bleached and chosen purposely to portrayed the ‘dumb blonde’ title, simply just for entertainment. But, there has been many blondes in our society that break this stereotype. For example, the outstanding and inspirational J.K Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter sires. Rose to fame by writing these books and sold over millions of copies. Just to make this clear, yes, she is a blonde. To determine the intelligence of an induvial through their appearance, in my opinion is quite horrendous because the color of one’s hair has nothing to do with the way they think. We also have, Karen Lu Jean Nyberg an American mechanical engineer and NASA astronaut. Nyberg became the 50th woman in space on her first mission in 2008. Now, calling her a dumb blonde bimbo would make no sense. In conclusions one should not judge someone by their physical appearance, and have the misconception that is shown in the media determine whether someone is intelligent or not.
ReplyDelete-Marwa Niazi
Religious people not caring about education.
ReplyDeleteThere are a lot of people who tend to think and also believe that people who wear niqaab are really religious, and they don’t really care about worldly education. They don’t get an education, and even if they do, they tend to get an Islamic education. This stereotype is not true at all because I personally know a lot of people who are niqaabis, and are also well educated. One of my teachers is a niqaab (she started at the age of 12), and she is a medical doctor and an Alimaa. Yes, it is true that niqaabi people do give importance to Islamic education, but they also acquire worldly knowledge as well. One of my friends is a niqaabi (she started in grade 6), she completed her high school and is now in university with the dream of becoming a teacher. My current teacher, who also wears the niqaab is a very inspiring person to me. She not only is very educated in Islamic knowledge, but also did her honors in Political Science (English) from UofT. Looking at these niqaabi role models, we can see that if a person is a niqaabi, it doesn’t necessarily mean that she doesn’t give importance to worldly knowledge.
-Ateea Mazumder
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ReplyDeleteGrowing up in an Asian family has drilled the terms, “doctor”, “engineer” and “pharmacist” in our heads. Many people like to believe that pursuing any of those careers are going to make you successful in life and that you should always stay in school and graduate from a university with a PhD. People also like to believe that just because someone feels like school isn’t for them and they decide to take another path in their life, they won’t be successful and are dumb. I asked my aunt one day if she remembers Pythagorean Theorem or how to find the value of x. Her response? “I haven’t applied any of those in my adult life.” We all have different abilities, thought processes, experiences. So why is a class full of individuals tested by the same means? Albert Einstein, Nobel prize-winning physicist, also a high school dropout at the age of 15. Mark Zuckerberg (co-founder and CEO of Facebook), Zuckerberg dropped out of Harvard in his sophomore year to complete his Facebook project. Steve Jobs (Apple founder), dropped out of Reed College at the age of 19. Bill Gates (founder of Microsoft) dropped out at the age of 20. All these famous men have one main thing in common; all of them dropped out of school and are still successful. Success shouldn’t be based on attending school or not, success happens in many ways. Be the controller of your own type of success.
ReplyDelete-Madeena
What comes to your mind when you think of a female Muslim? A veiled victim of male oppression, awaiting Western liberation? A slogan-shouting terrorist? An un-educated foreigner with whom you have nothing in common with? A woman who has no voice or freedom? If you are like many people, this may be your impression of the Muslim woman. Islam achieved a comprehensive system for women’s' rights 1400 years ago which defies all the popular stereotypes of the oppressed Muslim woman. What's more, Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world today, and the biggest number of converts is made up of Western women. Certainly these women do not choose Islam because they find it oppressive or unfair. Most female converts, in fact, are attracted to Islam for the respect and dignity that Islam demands for women. The hijab is often displayed in the media as an object of oppression towards Muslim women; this stereotype is the base foundation for many misconceptions within the media and society. Misconceptions such as Muslims women being limited or backwards. But these statements are false; Hijab does not hinder women from attaining what they want. At times media portrays the hijab as something that suppresses the Muslim women but the hijab through the understanding of Islam is a commandment of God. The hijab does not press nor limit the Muslim women in any way. In today’s society, we see Muslim woman with hijab contributing to society in many ways.
ReplyDelete- Soraya Sammady
(sister this is soraya's but since she couldnt post it i posted it for her)
Just because one person did it, doesnt mean that the whole nation would.
ReplyDeleteMany people say that ALL muslims are terrorists, when only just a few of them are.
One muslim (or a non-muslim pretending to be muslim) would go bombing around buildings or shooting,etc. And people would just start to say that ALL muslims are terrorists. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM.
I just dont understand why people would atart judging a whole religion just because of one or a few people. If a christain person did a harmful act, would people strf saying that christians are ALL terrorists??
No. They wouldnt. They would just say that that particular person is a terrorist. But why do they call ALL muslims terrorists if just one person has done the act??
Is it because there racist?? Is it because they dont like the religion?? Is ot because most people dont know what islam is?? Or is it just because other people are calling them terrorists and they follow along??
Im not saying that all non-muslims think that muslims are terrorists, im just saying that if you actually met and talked to a muslim, maybe youll see a whole new image of what you thought of them, and become good friends.
Most people jusge people when they dont know what there background story is. They dont know how much trouble or torture that they have been through. They dont know there personality, there dignity,etc, yet they still have the potential to judge them on there appearance or by their religion and culture.
"Don't judge a book by its cover"
There is good and bad in every religion, you just have to seek for it.
Women aren't as smart as a man. Throughout my life I have seen many examples of people using or thinking this. However, this is proven wrong and there is a lot of proof. Rita Levi-Montalcini (1909-2012) decided to attend medical school, overcoming the objections of her father. Levi-Montalcini and her colleague Stanley Cohen received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) in 1986. Brenda Hale (1945-till now) was the first woman and the youngest judge to become a law lord, and is currently the only female justice of the UK Supreme Court. Marie Curie (1867-1934), on December 10, 1903, Marie Curie became the first woman (along with her husband, Pierre) to receive the Nobel Prize. The discoverer of radium and polonium coined the term radioactivity to describe the elements' radiation of alpha, bate and gamma rays. In 1911, she became the first person to win a second Nobel Prize. These are just a few of many women who have shown that women are smart like men. Each one of them is smart in their own unique way and maybe surpassing men in different ways and doing what men can’t do.
ReplyDelete-Fatima Sadia
Good women are considered housewives. That’s what I hear and believe, for the women back home. This a common gender stereotype that are directed to women. This stereotype may be followed around the world in many countries, but one of these many places in the world, is my home country, Pakistan. I have heard from my families, cousins, relatives, friends, and many other people that women are going to grow up to be housewives, and they are considered to learn how to cook, clean, take care of the household etc., at a young age. Women back home are considered grown up at a young age, and are commanded to take care of the household, and pay less attention to their education. It is also believed that men are supposed to be the ones that are successful in life, but who knew that many women, in theses many countries that believe in these stereotypes, are women of inspiration and are successful in life. Two women that have broken my belief in this stereotype is Malala and Aisha r.a. Malala is a noble prize winner and has proven to men and women around the whole world that women can be what they want to be and follow their dreams. Aisha r.a’s life is proof that women can be far more learnt then men and be a source of inspiration for men and women. Women can be as good and educated as men could ever be.
ReplyDeleteJewish people are known to be greedy, rich and arrogant people. They think they all go to good private schools because they are rich. They expect them to be the most successful and smart just because they are Jews. If you knew one personally, you would clearly see that all if those things don't apply to all Jews. Sure, they may own many successful companies and own television channels, but that doesn't mean that Jews aren't all like that. They could be just like you and me. Just normal people with a different religion and culture. For all we know, there could be some Jews who are not rich, maybe even poor. Just because you have a different religion doesn't mean you will become rich, because if that did happen, the whole world would've been filled with Jews by now. Another thing that people fail to realize is that their are Jews of colour as well. These coloured-Jews are discriminated by people who share the same beliefs as them. They are called names and treated differently because of their ethnicity. In the end, people need to realize that you shouldn't go off judging people just because they have different beliefs and that every person, no matter what colour, should be treated with equality.
ReplyDelete~Liya
Due to stereotypes, people make assumptions on groups of people based on societies perspective on them. It can be either opinion based and it can be negative or positive. Stereotypes have caused distortions on how people should be based on their nationality, race, gender, personality, etc. Judging people on what they should be like or how they are before actually meeting that particular person wrong. You may have a different opinion about others on how they are whether its physical or intellectual, but portraying them out in society in a negative way can have a lot of impacts. I would always talk about how blondes are not smart and the only thing that they can do is just gossip. Everyone in my family would depict them to be dumb and would consider them just someone who thinks they're smart but actually just wouldn’t stop blabbering random things. Despite, having actually research and meet a blonde to see if they hold as much intellect as any other person with different hair color we went on about this stereotype until The Ohio State University proved our us wrong. They had said that the study of 10,878 Americans found that white women who said their natural hair color was blonde had an average IQ score within 3 points of brunettes and those with red or black hair.This study provides evidence that there shouldn't be any discrimination against blondes on their intelligence. This study made me realize that blondes may not be that smart but, they certainly are not the dumbest. In conclusion, We can start changing our perception of stereotypes. -safia
ReplyDeleteDue to stereotypes, people make assumptions on groups of people based on societies perspective on them. It can be either opinion based and it can be negative or positive. Stereotypes have caused distortions on how people should be based on their nationality, race, gender, personality, etc. Judging people on what they should be like or how they are before actually meeting that particular person is wrong. You may have a different opinion about others on how they are whether its physical or intellectual, but portraying them out in society in a negative way can have a lot of impacts. When I went to Afghanistan, I saw that women didn’t have an input on anything whether it was a discussion based on knowledge that required an intellectual mind or something physical. We aren't allowed to ride bikes or seem to have pleasure and if we wanted to have fun it must be done secretly. If someone finds out that you've done something which wasn’t allowed to do, trouble will arouse. You will be judged and the stereotype here is that if you had a source of joy then you're considered weird and a stand out. Everyone in my family would depict a women who had extensive knowledge to be dumb. In conclusion, we should be aware that all stereotypes causes prejudgment. We should learn to respect and understand other cultures, religions, and countries.
ReplyDeleteA specific reasoning, judgement or action adopted by certain individuals in a way that can’t prove reality. However, the performance of individuals may not be accurately representing modern day society. But the thought of basing one person who is unique in character and belief is called a stereotype. ‘’ All smokers are addicted to smoking and can’t quit the strong addiction.’’ One common misconception that society has changed many perspectives implying 90% of cigarette smokers are cold, heartless and rude. People smoke for various reasons like peer pressure (the influence of others), social rewards (a form of acceptance in a group) etc. For young people, it’s the thrill given to whoever tends to break the law. Adults smoke for stress and pressures of the economy and personal problems. It’s a fact proven true that smoking is addictive. There is a substance in the cigarette called Nicotine which when burnt, reaches the brain within 10 seconds of inhalation of the smoke. Even though there is Nicotine in cigars not all the smokers are addicted to smoking. Many people quit smoking even though it takes time. Study show that when people smoke they give up their body and shortening their lifespan. Nobody has the right to judge a crowd because everyone is different within.
ReplyDelete-ibna
I'm posting this on behalf of Samiha Ibnat
ReplyDeleteAsian men are good at math, skinny and tiny, not very masculine, and can't work in the entertainment industry. Have you thought of Asian men to have any of these qualities? You probably never thought of a super buff Asian man other than that one dude in that muscle-building, fit body advertisement, and you cant really trust ads, nowadays, can we?. The way that Asian men are portrayed by movies, books,t.v shows, etc. are not always the way they are. Usually, the only roles Asian men are allowed to play are the roles of the nerdy, weak characters. In the movie 16 candles, the Asian exchange student was shown to be skinny, almost feminine, and only capable of getting the weird girl no one wants. But this doesn't apply to all Asian men. You have people like Bart kwan who is definitely masculine and even a gym trainer for his friends. there are also people like Aziz Ansari and David So who are amazing comedians. Many Asians may be good at math, and that's not a bad thing. But this doesn't mean all of them are. Some may be kind of small, but that doesn't mean they are weak or that all Asians are small too. Not all of them are the pretty, feminine pop boys you see on the internet these days. In conclusion, race doesn't determine the personality, character, professions or talents of its people. In the end, it's all up to the individual them self.
Stereotyping is an ingredient that we often use in our everyday lives. We have the sense of hearing stereotypes every now and then. Each indivual person, whether you’re young or old, is labeled with either an optimistic or pessimistic stereotypes. Stereotyping happens when people group each other into specific categories. Stereotypes affect people in different ways such as their emotions, community lives and how people work together in an environment. People often think that women aren't as smart as a man. Just for the reason that there are more successful men than successful women. However, there is a saying, “Behind every successful man, there is a strong, wise and hardworking woman." Sometimes, it's not that women are stupid. They just take care of the face of men, so they conceal their intelligence. In my country, women are well thought-out of being a grown up at a very young age, and are told to take care of the household. Some of these women are educated but just don’t have the chance to be want they want. On December 10, 1903, Marie Curie was the foremost woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person and only woman to win twice, the only person to win twice in multiple sciences. Every woman is successful in their own way, but some women can be more intelligent than men could ever be.
ReplyDelete-Tasnim Sheikh
What is a stereotype? To define stereotype that exact definition is “any commonly known public belief about a certain social group or a type of individual”. In other words making assumptions and misconceptions about people. Judging and labelling someone whom you do not know at all or even taking a chance to listen to their side of the story. One of the stereotypes are all school dropouts will have no future. When you hear your neighbour’s son dropped out of high school, what do you of him? Some of your thoughts may be that he definitely isn’t a good kid that he is not smart and fools around in class, he is probably doing drugs that he has no care for education or a successful life because dropping out of school makes him unsuccessful. But did you know a kid who dropped out of school because teachers told him that he was too dumb in the head to learn any education, was actually the famous German theoretical physicist Albert Einstein? What are you thought now? Are all high school dropouts really unintelligent or maybe they’re just more intelligent in other types of work that the school doesn’t provide or maybe they can’t learn just by sitting on a desk they need experience.
ReplyDelete-Tanisha
Stereotype
ReplyDeleteStereotypes are a part of our everyday life. We hear stereotypes every day and everywhere. Sometimes we can find ourselves in a situation where we make stereotypes for a large group of people. Every person, young or old, is labelled with either positive or negative stereotypes. Stereotyping is a way that people group each other. Each group is called by name, that doesn’t really fit to everyone in that specific group. Stereotypes affect people’s social lives, emotions, and how people interact with their environment. So, Every time you think about a Black Person you think probably they are a Gangster or a Rob. In my family everyone is scared of black people because they think, that they are drug dealer or a gangster, the way they dress up makes my family go crazy. Every time I pass by a black person we get really scared as if they are going to kill us. The public school I went to was filled with them, I thought that I will start acting like them, start talking them and probably wear clothes like them. I was the only girl in my school who wore hijab I felt like everyone looked at me. But I was wrong they were so helpful, they taught me how to be confidence about my hijab, after the year was done I was the same I never changed or either acted like them, from this I learned that what you think is mostly isn’t true. People in America think that they can’t talk properly, and had cause them lots of problems during the war. Everyone as their own opinion towards a person. But black people are really active they get motived easily, if you give them work they will do it on time. But people never knew that there were many things that they invented for example, Garrett Morgan blazed a trail for African-American inventors he invented a hair-straightening product, a breathing device, a revamped sewing machine and an improved traffic signal. If these things were not available in our life what will we do? Stereotype can lead many problems so we need to stop this. “Never judge a book by its cover”.
Racism is still with us. But it is up to us to prepare our children for what they have to meet, and, hopefully, we shall overcome. Rosa Parks
Never judge a book by its cover – unknown
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“All fat/big people are unhealthy & all skinny/small people are healthy.”
ReplyDeleteWe often regard the body type of a person with how much they eat. This, later on, leads to them believing that they can extract from this how active that person may be. Although, we don’t actually look into to what it that is being consumed. Some people are born in such a way that they can not change their size, (well not by natural means at least). Whether it’s by the transfer of genes or if the person has a high or low metabolism, that is just the way that person is built. I believe that as long as a person puts forth conscious efforts into being active, and they strive to make better food choices, then they are more healthy regardless if their body shows it or not. You can not assume the entire lifestyle of a person by simply looking them over, that is not fair to them. Making such narrow-minded deductions in no less than a second glance is a show of clear ignorance. Acceptance of the fact that everyone is created differently is vital in such a society where people are so quick to judge by appearance. Before go out making unnecessary assumptions on another, check yourself first.
-Ramsha Tariq