President Obama walks fine line on race, justice
11 years ago
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Fair or Unfair Generalizations
At moments in our class, we have bumped into the discussion on the practicality of racial generalizations. Grouping individuals for say economic, organizational, or simply dialectical purposes. Similar generalizations occur frequently on a variety of topics. "I like all fruits," "The Northeast is cold." "White men can't jump." Generalizations help us navigate the world and function more efficiently. Yet some generalizations are deemed offensive or simply unjustified, while others seem reasonable. My question to the class is if you think there are qualitative terms to judge the morality and acceptability of making certain generalizations?
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I think a major part of what makes certain generalizations problematic is the fact that they have negative connotations and limitations.
ReplyDeleteTo say I like all fruits does not create any limitations as to what I can or can't do. It does not change the way people interpret my potential or their expectations of me.
To day that the Northeast is cold is factual. In terms of annual averages, it is colder than the southwest. It is not cold ALL THE TIME but has historically been colder than the south. Some people actually prefer cold whether, it is not a blatantly inferior trait.
To say that a white man can't jump implies much more than a simple preference. It provides a limitation, while some people may be indifferent about their jumping ability, nobody aspires to not be able to jump. -- the same goes for dancing; you may not care to dance, but you don't dream of being a bad dancer.
Generalizations help us navigate, but they can also provide limitations that lead to self-fulfilling prophecies and negative stereotypes. Negative generalizations lead to offensive stereotypes and hurtful images.