The Roots of Prejudice - The Cultivation of Ignorance

The heart of a toddler does not harbor prejudice.  On the contrary, researchers note that a child will often readily play with a child of a different race.  By the age of 10 or 11, however, he may reject people of another tribe, race, or religion.  During his formative years,  he acquires a collection of viewpoints that may last a lifetime.

How are these lessons learned?  A child picks up negative attitudes-both spoken and unspoken-first from his parents and then from his friends or teachers. Later the neighbors, newspaper, radio, or television might further influence him.  Although he likely  knows little or nothing about the groups he dislikes, by the time he becomes and adult, he has concluded that they are inferior and untrustworthy.  He may even hate them.

With increased travel and commerce, contact between different cultures and ethnic groups has grown in many countries.  Nevertheless, the person who has developed a strong prejudice usually clings to his preconceived notions.  He may insist on stereotyping thousands or even millions of people, assuming that they  all share certain bad qualities.  Any negative experience, even if it involves just one person from that group, serves to reinforce his prejudice. Positive experiences, on the other hand, are usually disregarded as exceptions to the rule. 

Breaking Free

Although most people condemn prejudice in principle, few escapes its clutches.  In fact, many who are deeply prejudiced would insist that they are not. Others say it does not matter, especially if people keep their prejudices to themselves.  Yet, prejudice does matter because it hurts people and divides them.  If prejudiced is the child of ignorance, hatred is frequently its grandchild.  Author Charles Caleb Colton ( 1780?-1832) pointed out:  "We hate some persons because we do not know them; and we will not know them because we hate them."  Nevertheless, if prejudice can be learned, it can also be unlearned. How?

Next time: The Roots of Prejudice - Religion-A Force for Tolerance or Prejudice?

From the jw.org publications