Why People are Racist
by Jasmeen Kasem (2004) Gisela-Gymnasium, München/Germany on 2023-05-28
The following article was written as part of the trait d`union online workshop “The fight against discrimination and the discussion on how to” between editors from Liceo Sesto Properzio di Assisi/Italy and Gisela-Gymnasium Munich/Germany in March 2022.
Why are people racist?
When we talk about racism, it is very important to know how it develops in people’s minds. Which people have an influence on us and what we could do against it.
Often people tend to be racist because they believe they are superior and they look down on people with different origins, skin color or another culture. Certain people used these ideas to dominate others.
Mainly ignorance and fear of others lead them to be racist.
When we are young, our mind starts to develop and our mindset is shaped. So, when our family members or friends express racist opinions, it is common that we will take on these views ourselves, and if we do not do something about it, they can stay with us for a lifetime.
We often put labels on people
He dresses like this so he must be into this music or we also stereotype people from different racial backgrounds as agro.
Racists wrongly believe that preconceived ideas about certain groups are true, no matter what science says.
To beat these stereotypes, it is important not to judge a whole group. Get to know people from different racial backgrounds and you will find out that you have more in common than you expected. We often see people who look or talk differently as an easy target. The problem with it is that these impacts can reduce people’s ability to work or study, and achieve their future goals.