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Stereotypes
Feb 27, 2003
Author: Mark
Email: mark@queeryouth.org.uk
"Why do white people smell like wet dogs when they come out of the rain?"
"Why is it that you see more men and women of colour racing in athletics than white men and women?"
"Why do so many Indians have that distinct odour?"
Ok so these examples are a little extreme, but you get the picture. Questions such as these however, are asked all the time by people. Stereotyping is something that’s extremely common in modern society and affects EVERY single race, religion, sexual orientation or even people with disabilities. One of the most common forms of stereotyping is that of gay people, something that we have to be very aware of.
I happen to belong to two groups of people that are very often stereotyped; I’m Jewish and also gay. Oddly enough though I don’t fit the stereotype for either of these things. Oddly? No, it’s not odd, it’s much more common than you are led to believe by the media and even just the general attitude of ‘the man in the street’. I don’t look Jewish (as much as it is possible to look Jewish anyway) and in the same way, if one were to follow the stereotypes, I don’t act gay. And what exactly is "acting gay?" Today whilst watching TV with some younger people at my school, there was this man talking about some science experiment that he had just done and after he had finished talking, some enlightening female said "he has to be gay". WHY?
The guy had kind of a high-pitched voice, is really cute, and is a "trendy" dresser… Of course he's gay - silly me!
It seems most of us are conforming to what the general ‘straight’ society has labelled ‘gay’. From first impressions a fair proportion of the gay population doesn't appear any different from anyone else. But don't they carry out gay sexual acts? Therefore they act gay? I don't think because a guy dresses trendy and talks with a lisp, or a girl has broad shoulders and a deep voice that they should be labelled as ‘gay’.
The more ignorant people in society believe that their picture of a racial or sexual stereotype is correct. This can unfortunately, often lead to a form of racism. The Nazis and their Eugenics were all based around racial stereotypes; they thought that they could tell if someone was Jewish from literally measuring the size of their nose or head. Of course this is bad science in its utterly worst form and has now been debunked completely, but elements of these racial stereotypes remain with people. This is only really damaging when someone thinks that all Jewish people are somehow mean or stingy for example, an unfortunate stereotype that for some reason remains with many people. And right there, we have prejudice.
It’s the same thing when people think of black people as being criminals for instance. Only today I heard a racist joke: “What do you say to a black man in a suit?” and the reply: “Would the defendant please rise!” Now personally, I don’t find this amusing in the slightest. It’s a racist joke, built on stereotyping. What was truly sad though was the amount of people around me laughing at this. It’s not funny to generalise, if someone were to make such a joke about gay or Jewish people, I would be furious. It’s at that point where it turns from stereotyping to homophobia, racism and just ignorant prejudicing.
Education is the only way to stamp out stereotyping. Sadly at the moment, children in schools are fed all kinds of stereotypes, a result of which being them growing up only having the picture stereotyped people in their mind as supposed to having formed opinions through gaining knowledge and experience. Recently a boy at my school after finding out that I was Jewish, said something along the lines of “why aren’t you here and not at home?” Home meaning Israel. He had failed to grasp the concept that it was possible for someone to be both British AND Jewish. This is coming from a 16 year old. I’m not sure if its ignorance or mere stupidity, but whatever it is, it shows that people are not being educated about simple basic things that might seem obvious to some, but for others it is desperately needed to be taught. For the sake of future generations and the society that they will be living in, it is vital for people now to educate children simply in the ways of the world.
Stereotyping is an annoying thing, it is a stupid thing but it is also a dangerous thing. There are so many examples where the use of stereotypes is applied to situations that need it like poke in the eye with a blunt stick. For instance, far too often people see the word ‘Palestinian’ synonymous with ‘terrorist’ or what I’m learning to discover ‘Jewish’ with ‘Israeli Soldier’ (or something comparable). It’s very worrying how I have to explain to people that just because I’m Jewish, you can’t hold me responsible for Israel’s security policy, whether I agree with it or not is not relevant. You CANNOT lump two things together simply because it’s convenient. It’s arrogant, dangerous and prejudiced; all things that we must fight to get rid of as best we can. When I told my best friend that I was gay, her immediate reaction was along the lines of “I would never have guessed, you don’t ACT gay.” Well things don’t work like that, and the sooner we all wake up to the fact that we are sublimely prejudiced in our stereotypical views of people that have been drummed into us by society, the better off the world will be. Take care, Mark.