Deny Ignorance... well let's just see about that.

I propose a show of all hands from ATS members who do or do not hold any prejudices against any race, ethnic group, social class, sexual orientation etc. etc. etc. I do not suggest you share which group you hold these prejudices against - just a simple yes or no.

I'll start - I hold no prejudice against any group. I see everyone as a human being on the same planet - plain and simple. I judge individuals as individuals.

I am very interested in seeing where this post may go but please at the very least I urge tolerance. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion - let's not turn this into another confrontation. There are enough of those in the world already.

Who's next?

I don't judge anyone on anything.

I don't care about their age, color, race, job, sexual preferences and I could go on and on. It's the person themselves that matters.


But sadly we will always have prejudice. People can't accept what they don't know or understand and to me that is different races, cultures and so on.

I hold no prejudices and I try not to judge.

Well, I'll be honest, yes, I have held prejudiced against a certain group. Not something I am proud of. In my mind, there was good reason, but it something I am currently working on.

No prejudice here

reply to post by chiefsmom


Brave answer. Somehow I doubt many others will be as forthcoming.

I don't hold prejudices based on race, religion, gender, sexual orientation etc. I am a big proponent of the movement toward equality and acceptance.

no prejudice here.. we are all part of the human family and should treat each other as such.

reply to post by fenceSitter


I'll bet you hold prejudice against people who have prejudices.



Namaste

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Right on, my friend! No one's perfect. I respect anyone that can come forth and admit to flaws.

I can recall I was prejudice after being locked up. I was taught to hate others and did so accordingly. I've since moved past that, as you can see.

Do really fat people count?

If they do, then sadly I would have to admit prejudging them before they say so much as a word. I haven’t always felt this way, and I’m not brainwashed by the media to think only skinny is sexy, large is beautiful to me. Fat is another story, and yes the two are quite different.
If you have a medical condition which prevents proper diet and exercise, then my prejudice would be incorrect and I would be proven a fool which I obviously would deserve. I will say, though I know it only helps a small bit, that I have never called someone fat, laughed at anyone, or teased anyone for this, as I don’t see it as being in the least bit funny. It is just something I don’t understand and cant sympathies with and therefore at first glance have feelings of negativity.

So yeah, I guess I have a prejudice. Be nice…

I would love to reach a point in my life where I could assert, without hesitation, that I have divested myself of all prejudice.

But sadly, I think that kind of enlightenment requires a change in my personality that is more comprehensive than simply saying so.

I don't think it is so easy eliminate preconceptions and biases because while I can easily take the intellectual step of acknowledging that people are simply people; I cannot yet find a way to eliminate my understanding that circumstances of birth, upbringing, or life choices do have a bearing on my estimate of the the amount of trust I might be willing to extend to someone; and that such factors are not within my (and often the person's) control.

Some may call any such reservations reasonable, but those excluded from my trust will not see it that way; often opting to identify the bias as base, and ignorant. In fact, sometimes gleefully characterizing it in such a manner, as it strengthens their sense of righteous pride. Our culture has engendered the ability to make such accusations of bias weighty, regardless of the intent or rationale behind it.

Yet I think the offense resides often in the mind of the presumed victim; irrespective of the intent of the one reserving trust. I suspect that some actually seek the offense; going so far as to perform whatever mental gymnastics are necessary to confabulate the matter... to their advantage.

In any case, I am still struggling to find a way to not let myself be victimized by bias and prejudice... so far all I have learned is that there is a world of difference between saying you have no bias, and recognizing that bias is not something you 'have'... it's something you 'cultivate.'

Eventually you trim away the chaff, and what remains is what you can tackle and overcome. I'm still working on it.... and dodging verbal bullets along the way.

reply to post by fenceSitter


No class/group prejudice here.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character...

reply to post by Maxmars


Well said, my friend!

Originally posted by ErgoTheConfusion
I'll bet you hold prejudice against people who have prejudices.

I know you weren't talking to me, but you're right! About me, anyway. And I'm sure there are others I have.

I carefully worded my response because I know I do have some prejudices. One is toward big corporate executives, but I didn't think that was what the op was asking for. It's not one of the often repeated prejudices people have like race, religion, gender and so on.

So there's two. And where there are two, there are probably more.

Originally posted by mblahnikluver
I don't judge anyone on anything.

I don't care about their age, color, race, job, sexual preferences and I could go on and on. It's the person themselves that matters.

But sadly we will always have prejudice.

And yet you say this:

People can't accept what they don't know or understand and to me that is different races, cultures and so on.

"People".....or "some" people?

Don't lump us together as stereotypes please. That is the FIRST mistake in prejudice.

We are all individuals, so what you dislike in some people doesn't apply to all of us and maybe you should practice what you preach.

Acceptance is a rare asset these days. Some of us have got where we are because we realise that accepting some things even if we don't understand them can bring clarification due to the new perspective.

Cheers.

I do not hate any race or person. I love everyone even if I don't like you!! If only everyone in the world thought this way.....

I don't know, I feel I have to retract what I said now. This is a very hard question, more than originally thought anyway. It's easy to say I have no prejudices, but maybe I do, none that I can think of now, but see, I'm not thinking about it. It's something I don't want to think about.

The effort is there, but as I said earlier, I'm not perfect by far.

Notice how I said I try not to judge. I make judgements daily without noticing them. I try not to, because I know I don't want people judging me. I'm the last person who should judge others, battling with addiction daily and all.

cant say im too fond of cambodians...but maybe thats just because one of them shot my friend in the neck

I do judge people. We all do. Fact.
However, I do not judge based on anything but actions, personality, morals, behaviors and the like.
We all do this......judgement is not always a bad thing