Stereotypes and racism remain present in our society, and will not be going away any time soon. That being said, it is important to know how different forms of racism and stereotypes affect the mental health of different minorities. Not every minority is discriminated against and stereotyped in the same way, which means that minorities may be affected on a mental level differently. Understanding the different affects that racism and stereotypes have on minority groups is important to the values of well being, equality, and a healthy life style.
For instance, Asians are a good example of how one minority can be affected differently by stereotypes. Lwamoto, Derek, Lejuez, Hamilton, and Grivel state, “Asian American young adults are increasingly
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According to Seaton, and Eleanor in the article The Influence of Cognitive Development and Perceived Racial Discrimination on the Psychological Well-being of African American Youth, “racially discriminatory incidents are prevalent among African American youth given that 91% of pre-adolescent African Americans reported experiencing at least one discriminatory experience in their lifetime” (695). It’s both disturbing and shocking that young African American youths experience racism at such a young age. Being discriminated against at such an early age can cause serious mental health issues for African Americans. Seaton, and Eleanor state, “racial discrimination have been linked to lower life satisfaction levels, decreased self-esteem, increased depressive symptoms, increased anger and problem behaviors, decreased achievement motivation and an increased likelihood of alcohol consumption”(695). African Americans should not have to suffer from any type of discrimination especially the youth who are too young to even really comprehend why racism and discrimination is even present in our society. Our youth should be able to learn and live their lives in a friendly and supportive atmosphere, but instead, young African American youth have to deal with racism, which can lead to all kinds of problems to their mental well-being Problems that include a …show more content…
Ahmed, Sameera, and Linda describe in the article Understanding the Mental Health Needs of American Muslims, “A 1,600% volume increase since 2000 in the number of hate crimes perpetrated against Muslims. As a result, many American Muslims experience increased feelings of anxiety, fear, and rejection” (2). It is wrong to hate against a group of people just because they may be different then you. These hate crimes that are performed against Muslims cause American Muslims severe mental suffering, such as living in constant fear and a feeling of being 2nd class citizens. American Muslims are treaded as unequals just because they appear different and believe in a religion that most people are not familiar with which Is Islam. According to Ahmed, Sameera, and Linda, “Despite increased attention, American Muslims continue to be misunderstood and misrepresented. These individuals represent a highly diverse group who are American and follow the religion of Islam”(1). This misunderstanding of their culture causes people to hate against Muslims since people fear what they don’t necessarily understand. American Muslims get a bad rep just because of how they look as well as a misrepresentation of Muslims in our society. Which ultimately causes hate crimes towards American Muslims causing a mental state of fear, anxiety, and rejection to this particular
Throughout the years, racial stereotypes have played a major role in society. Even today, one combines racial stereotypes and prejudice thoughts before one even says a word to the person. Just seeing an African- American man while in a parking lot and pulling out ones phone, can be a simple example of modern-day racial stereotypes.
Certainly, there are some stereotypes that may be true, but do not apply to all persons. In my case, the stereotypes I experienced about my ethnicity and my gender, they do not show the truth about me, and they do not affect me, but I learned that I should not label someone without knowing them or even without proofs. Anyway, stereotypes are endless, and have become commonplace in our
Stephen Bonnycastle in his criticism, In Search of Authority, explains stereotypes as, "The system (sometimes known as “the patriarchal order”) that causes the majority of men and women to take on these different roles ... hidden, like the rules of grammar in a language."(10). When a stereotype is introduced into a situation for a extended period of time, it is psychologically proven that it will become an expectation. Stereotypes prove to act as an obscuring lens into which most people view the world. When a person is unaware of a culture, race, gender they mainly use the stereotypes to judge them against. Stereotypes are not just a generalization of a group of people, "stereotypes warrant a closer analysis, because they powerfully shape the reality of gender differences..."(Brody 396). The effects of stereotypes go deeper than just male and female, race against race, "everyone is vulnerable to stereotype threat, at least in some circumstances"(reducingstereotypethreat.org). Stereotypes overall cause negative side effects, some fatal. These side effects are psychological as well as physical. People who
In many circles of the world, various groups of people distinguish themselves from one another through religion, language, culture, and sometimes gender. People also develop stereotypes about a particular group of people in order to identify them. However, most of the time, these stereotypes hold true for only some members of a group. Sometimes, these stereotypes are just plain misconceptions that do not even apply to the group it claims to. Stereotypes are placed on people because it is a way to easily identify what type of person or ethnicity an individual is. At one point in time, these stereotypes may have been true; however, in today’s modern society, most of these stereotypes are outdated and false, which leads them to turn into misconceptions. Usually, stereotypes are utilized to humiliate and degrade the person or group; they also do not provide any beneficial outcomes. Stereotypes focus on how a particular group acts because of the radical ideas and actions of the few, how a particular group looks, or how that group is physically lacking in some way. These stereotypes often lead to conflicts because the group does not appreciate the way it is being perceived. Seldom are the stereotypes placed on a group of people truthful and accurate. Some hardly even apply to the particular group people it claims to. It is true that how people are perceived has a big impact on how other individuals interact with them; however, people are not perceiving these groups correctly.
Stereotypes can be defined as sweeping generalizations about members of a certain race, religion, gender, nationality, or other group. They are made everyday in almost every society. We develop stereotypes when we are unable or unwilling to obtain all the information we would need to make fair judgments about people or situations. By stereotyping, we assume that a person or group has certain characteristics. Quite often, we develop these ideas about people who are members of groups with which we have not had firsthand contact. Stereotyping usually leads to unfair results, such as discrimination, racial profiling, and unnecessary violence, all behaviors which need to be stopped.
While browsing through articles on the internet, I came across many related to the topic of racism. I am beginning to feel as if I am surrounded by stories of racism. From the KKK’s aggressive campaign against immigrants, to the police violence against black people in cites throughout our nation, racism and discrimination continue to be problems. One story stood out to me and continues to make me uncomfortable. Malachi Wilson, a five year-old boy, could not attend his first day of kindergarten in Seminole, Texas. What could he have done to warrant the principal’s rejection? His hair was simply too long.
“…Everybody jumped on him, and beat him senseless… Everybody was hitting him or kicking him. One guy was kicking at his spine. Another guy was hitting him on the side of his face… he was unconscious. He was bleeding. Everybody had blood on their forearms. We ran back up the hill laughing… He should have died… He lost so much blood he turned white. He got what he deserved…” (Ridgeway 167). The skinheads who were beating this man up had no reason to do so except for the fact that he was Mexican. Racism in this day and age is still as big of a problem as it was in the past, and as long as hate groups are still around to promote violence, society is never going to grow to love one another.
The FBI reported that the amount of hate crimes against Muslim Americans increased 1,700 percent from 2000- 2001 (Attitudes Toward Muslim Americans Post 9/11, n.d, para 2). The actual amount of reported hate crimes went from 28 incidents to 481 incidents (Kuek Sur, 2016, para 4). The amount of hate towards muslims has continued to increase. The number of Americans with favorable views of Islam dropped from 41 percent in 2005 to 30 percent in 2010 (Clay, 2011, para 3). Although American Muslims have nothing in common with the 9/11 attackers besides religion, many have been treated unfairly by Americans whose views of Islam have been skewed by the 9/11
While racial prejudice and racism may seem and sound similar, they are different. According to the Oxford Dictionary racism is “the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races” (Racism); whereas, prejudice is a “preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience” (Prejudice). An important difference between racial prejudice and racism is that prejudice is a part of individuals, and racism is a part of a society. Racism is far more powerful than racial prejudice, even though it takes racial prejudice for racism to exist. Racism is where a “racial group has the social power to act on racial prejudice and negatively impact the lives of another racial group” (Harvey & Allard, 2012, p. 72). Racism is far more impacting and damaging than racial prejudice, even though racism cannot exist without some form of racial prejudice being present. An example of racial prejudice would be to assume that African American teenagers tend to be thieves. An individual store owner may have such racial prejudice simply based on an unfounded preconceived opinion. The store owner may be more suspicious of African American teenagers when they shop at his store that that of White teenagers. Racial prejudice can also happen when a person sees a group of African American teenagers, and automatically views them as gangsters and trouble makers simply based on an unfounded preconceived opinion. An extreme example of racism is when African Americans were not treated as equals in many parts of America before and duri...
Can one say that Americans have become tolerant or is racism alive and thriving in America? In recent news reports in print and televised, intolerance of others has been a hot topic. From the Clippers basketball franchise owner to the brothers that host a show on HGTV (Home and Garden Television). Have we not gotten past the racism that saw people sprayed with high pressure water hoses and attacked by trained dogs or has it become culvert to the point where most feel secure to be who they only to be shocked back to reality by things such as aforementioned?
“Stereotypes unreliable, exaggerated generalizations about all members of a group that do not take individual differences into account” (Schaefer 40). Stereotypes can be positive, but are usually associated with negative beliefs or actions such as racial profiling.
Racism and prejudice has been present in almost every civilization and society throughout history. Even though the world has progressed greatly in the last couple of decades, both socially and technologically, racism, hatred and prejudice still exists today, deeply embedded in old-fashioned, narrow-minded traditions and values.
Racial Discrimination, and Oppression and are still major problems in society. Many great historical leaders such as; Martin Luther King Jr., Malcom X , and more have fought for the end of racism and oppression yet it lingers like stray dog. Many times when people mention racism and oppression they overlook it, as though it weren’t a real issue in the world today. Ending racial discrimination and oppression is exceedingly important although we are of different race, sex, and language we have the same color blood and we’re human with emotions. The ending of racial discrimination and oppression, could lead to less suicides due to suicides, poverty, unemployment, and uneducated individuals. The information I will be presenting in this critical
Even though the world is filled with stereotypes and misconceptions about people, we can take mental steps toward overcoming those stereotypes. Being aware of our inner thoughts and feelings and how they affect our beliefs and actions is a constant battle, but will help reduce stereotypes in our own mind. Staying open minded to different religions, cultures, and races helps one get a better understanding about others for themself. Most of all, we can overcome stereotypes by taking into account individual differences and using factual information instead of assumptions (“Overcoming Stereotypes”).
Unfortunately due to our past history, discrimination had been among us from since decades. Discrimination and prejudice would probably be among us until the end of the world. Prejudice and discrimination is an action that treats people unfairly because of their membership in a particular social group, class, or category to which that person or thing belongs to rather on that individual. It is an unfair treatment to a person, racial group, and minority. It is an action based on prejudice.