Discrimination in Our Midst: Part 1 – What is Discrimination?
Discrimination in Our Midst: How to Identify and Challenge it in Our Community. A Five Part Series.
Discrimination is all around us, but we need to accept each other’s differences, support each other, and learn to live together.
Since the beginning of time, discrimination has been a worldwide issue. We have seen people discriminate against others because of their race, gender, age, and sexual orientation, to name a few, causing a divide. So what is discrimination? And why do we discriminate against others?
What does discrimination mean-
The standard definition of discrimination is prejudiced treatment towards a group based on the group’s race, age, sexual orientation, or gender. But trying to answer what discrimination is may often be more complex. The human mind naturally puts certain things into categories to adapt to the world. Our values and feelings about specific things are often based on what we learned from the people around us. At times discrimination also comes from a place of misunderstanding.
Why do people Discriminate-
Discrimination stems from many places. Most of the time, it comes from a place of hatred. But it can also come from other sources, one being insecurity. When we are vulnerable, discrimination is something others may use to lower us. Discrimination can also stem from pride, thinking that others are different because we feel superior over them. Ignorance can also play a role in discrimination. For example, when coming from a place with a lack of education, some may discriminate against others without learning about the unjust issues individuals face daily.
Conclusion-
Discrimination has plagued our society for centuries. But, for our society to flourish, those who discriminate must be educated and willing to see the need for change.
*Thank you to Ms. Geomone Jonson for her guidance in researching and writing this series.
Sources:
Discrimination. (n.d.). Amnesty International. Retrieved January 2, 2022, from https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/discrimination/
Discrimination: What is it, and how to cope. (2019, October 31). American Psychological Association. Retrieved January 2, 2022, from https://www.apa.org/topics/racism-bias-discrimination/types-stress
Discussing discrimination. (n.d.). American Physiological Association. Retrieved January 2, 2022, from https://www.apa.org/topics/racism-bias-discrimination/keita
Insight into why people discriminate and how to stop. (n.d.). Max Anders. Retrieved January 2, 2022, from https://www.maxanders.com/four-reasons-why-we-discriminate/