I believe that it is human nature to make assumptions about
certain situations because we tend to have a fear of the unknown. It is really
easy to simply put labels on things based on what others have said because it
eliminates the process of thought and the time consumption that comes along
with it. Once we accept those embellishments, they become a norm or a standard
and getting rid of them is a lot harder than it is to gain them.
I have had
plenty of experiences where people assume things about me based on my
appearance. There have been several times where I walk into a small store and I
get followed. The workers assume that because of my skin color or perceived
race, I will most likely try to commit a burglary or vandalize their store. I
have never committed any kind of crime related to that. It is clear to me that
store employees who have followed me have a perception of Mexican/Mexican
Americans as burglars or thieves. Their perceptions however are only based on
assumption and generalization and lead them to believe an untrue image of me.
-CesarCOMM41
Hey Cesar,
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is human nature to make assumptions about certain things because i for one do so and see many people do the same thing. I have not had an experience where someone straight up made assumptions because of my race. However, I know personally I do that sometimes when I am in neighborhoods that are known to be not as safe as some of the ones I grew up in. I know some people may say I am ignorant to make these assumptions. However, I believe that almost every person makes these assumptions when they are in locations that are not familiar with. I think it is almost impossible for people not to judge people off the bat in some situations, and while it may be wrong to do so, I think that assumptions will always be made when someone in an uncomfortable situation.
-Mike Ross