Does how you grow up affect your view of other races? - General

Note that I am White. I was just wondering, does how you perceive other races depend on how you were exposed to diversity in childhood, or does it depend on you later interactions with them? I believe that your early childhood experiences can have a great effect on how you see other races. Although I probably hold some subconscious prejudices (as we all do), I generally believe that it is your actions that define you, not the color of your skin. This "liberal" attitude For the first few years of my life, I always went to a daycare center which was filled with kids of all races. Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and Indians were always present, and I never had a problem with them. I remember getting along with everyone well enough, and my mom even says I called the Black kids my "brown friends". Later in my life, from 1st grade to 5th, I hardly had any children other than Whites in my classes, with the only exception being a Black kid who was in my 2nd grade class for half a year. It may be notable that I really didn't like this kid, as far as I remember, but this doesn't seem to have affected my view of Black people. The first time I had kids who were more diversified in race and ethnicity was middle school. There were more Blacks, Asians, and other races, and I never had any problems with them. Now, in high school, I still seem to view all races as equal. There are a lot more different races of kids at my school now, but even if I get angry at them, I still don't really think less of their entire race at the end of the day. I heard a story a few weeks ago about a little White girl who was waiting in line to see Santa. While she was waiting, another family got in line behind her. However, this family was Black, and the little girl started screaming and crying as soon as she saw them. She was deathly afraid of their little son, who just wanted to play. Does the way she was raised have anything to do with this action? Perhaps she had never seen a Black person before, and she was scared of their dark color. It is generally accepted that racists are how they are because their parents indoctrinate them that way. Are younger children more susceptible to Racism than older kids? Maybe it has nothing to do with childhood, but it depends on how you interact with others during your later life. You remember things better the older you get, so maybe these experiences will shape your racial attitude more than early ones. I believe that it does have to do with how you are raised and how you are exposed to other races as a young child. Younger children are more prone to make generalizations about things. If there was a mean Black child at a day care center, you might grow up thinking many or all Black people are mean. You might also think that because your family is what ever color it is, that people the same color as you are nicer and better than other, more unfamiliar colors. Your early experiences also determine your long term likes, dislikes, and prejudices, so you probably carry what ever positive or negative emotions you have about a certain race with you your entire life. What do you think is the biggest reason racists or tolerant people are formed? What are the determining factors? Early experiences? Later experiences? Genetics? Whatever you think, please, can everyone be tolerant of each others opinions on race. I don't want this to turn into a racist shitstorm, so please keep the insults to a minimum.

All blood runs the same, so I don't give a damn.

Most certainly.

Of fucking course it depends on how you grow up. Nobody is fucking born a racist. Stupid question.

I didn't read the thread, but the title seemed self explanatory... Of course the way you are raised affects your view on other races... You learn from your parents. The dumb rating was because? Oh, because I agreed with basic understanding of how humans learn?

Well, I grew up in a very multi-cultural surrounding, London. So on one hand, I have had a lot of experience with non-white people (I'm white), but, I was always bullied a lot, mainly by the non-white people, and I was also bullied a bit now that I moved to the US, in 8th grade because I'm bi, and most of the bullying was also by non-white people, so I have had many negative experiences with non-white people. So yes, I do have a negative disposition to blacks at least, mexicans I have generally gotten along well with though, and one of my best friend when I was little was Indian, and I had a couple other close indian friends, so I am ok with them. I try not to judge based off of skin color, but it happens. Usually I get over it once I talk to them and I can get to like them, but if I don't like a black person then I usually dislike them extra. It also helps that now in high school I get along with most everybody.

Definitely. I mean, think about it. If a black dude came into your house and killed your dog, you'd always have some kind of hatred toward black people, all because one black man came into your house and killed your dog. Now, if a Japanese dude came into your house and killed your dog, you'd feel the same way. It all has to do with things that happen in your life. They all influence your portrayal of different races.

Also I think nowadays the media is another big factor that can influence your view on a certain race

[QUOTE=Squad;27294021]I didn't read the thread, but the title seemed self explanatory... Of course the way you are raised affect your view on other races... You learn from your parents.[/QUOTE] Not just from your parents. From your surroundings. All the time.

The logical answer to racism seems to be what you said: maybe a kid had bad experiences with another race as a child. Although looking at how most racists behave, they usually have reasons for their hate. If they had bad experiences as a child, they might not be able to explain why they hate a certain race. Personally, I can't stand most stereotypical African Americans. Of course not all African Americans are ghetto. And I don't hate all ghetto African Americans. The ones that I don't have a relationship with are extremely annoying though. That being said, it's possible for someone to have a bad experience with another race as a child, grow up hating that race, and make up stupid excuses to reason why they hate said race.

[QUOTE=ImmortalKombat;27294064]Not just from your parents. From your surroundings. All the time.[/QUOTE] I didn't exclude the surroundings... I only commented on the fact that your parents raise you, and thus you would pick up some of their beliefs and values.

[QUOTE=zach34;27294049]Definitely. I mean, think about it. If a black dude came into your house and killed your dog, you'd always have some kind of hatred toward black people, all because one black man came into your house and killed your dog. Now, if a Japanese dude came into your house and killed your dog, you'd feel the same way. It all has to do with things that happen in your life. They all influence your portrayal of different races.[/QUOTE] Dumbest thing I've heard all week. There is nothing saying it's guaranteed someone will become racist because a person of a certain race did something bad towards this person. Absolutely nothing. It [b]can[/b] trigger something subconscious that could lead to prejudicial beliefs, but it's absolutely not guaranteed, as you put it. Please do some research before you post and make yourself look like an idiot.

[QUOTE=zach34;27294049]Definitely. I mean, think about it. If a black dude came into your house and killed your dog, you'd always have some kind of hatred toward black people, all because one black man came into your house and killed your dog. Now, if a Japanese dude came into your house and killed your dog, you'd feel the same way. It all has to do with things that happen in your life. They all influence your portrayal of different races.[/QUOTE] You have the right answer, however your logic fails. If a black guy came into my house and killed my dog, I wouldn't hate black people. I would be extremely nervous when strangers came to my house around my dog though... But it wouldn't be directed towards a race... It was a PERSON who killed my dog, not a race.

If it happened on more than once occasion, it could though. Our mind is programmed to see patterns, if we have consistently bad experience with black people, with will connect the bad with the black.

We, as humans, naturally create schemas - basically categories of objects based on how we expect something to act and behave. It's a way to store information categorically. Schemas make Car example: I don't know a lot of great deal about cars. So when I see a car in seemingly good condition I just think, "Well, it's a car all right," and expect it to behave like most every other car. I have a well developed schema for cars, but since I don't know a great deal about cars I don't have detailed schemas for the sub-categories of car. Because of this I'm more likely to form a negative schema about Ford because two of my families vehicles from Ford broke down on account of shit manufacturing. In reality, this is an unfair schema I've formed for Ford, but I have no reason to challenge it because I'm neither interested by cars nor am I going to purchase one any time soon. Someone else who knows a great deal about cars probably has better formed schemas that are, of course, still subject to such biases. It's hard to tell how much of their opinion is due to bias and how much is based on equal evaluation. My point: So try and apply that to races and you'll understand why racism is such a tricky problem. People ended up creating schemas around different skin colors and builds because they're very pronounced features. People ended up calling those races. The fact that we created schemas based on those features is horrible, but pervasive. I genuinely hope that we can eventually reform those schemas to not look even look at color. That would be the ultimate end to racism, but these schemas are so pervasive in society that it will be a difficult if not impossible task, no matter what the working time period is. The trouble is that there are a lot of people that are completely ignorant about these subgroups, even though they believe them to exist (may I reiterate, that they are a social construct that shouldn't have been built up in the first place). They are more easily swayed by a few bad experiences. Hell, just the belief in these sub-groups creates bias between them. There are others that think they know all there is to know, but are biased in some way. Their beliefs are much more strongly rooted and harder to shake. I think the best solution we have is to move away from our misinformed belief in race. I've always loved what Morgan Freeman had to say on the matter: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3cGfrExozQ[/media]

I'm black raised in the "ghetto" and turned out "white" I don't like gangsta black people they give real black people a bad name.

I hate the fact that every time I see a black person, I always think "Oh, a black person." I wish I could live in a world where I just see person instead of black person.

[QUOTE=kwkws;27294451]I don't like gangsta black people they give real black people a bad name.[/QUOTE] That's a terrible thing to say and you should be ashamed of yourself.

[QUOTE=cqbcat;27294469]I hate the fact that every time I see a black person, I always think "Oh, a black person." I wish I could live in a world where I just see person instead of black person.[/QUOTE] I know what you mean. I can't help but hate myself for this, and I try so hard to change it. I wish I never grew up in the fucking suburbs, or anywhere so racist. As if there's really anywhere you can escape racism, though.

My Mum is slightly racist and I think my Dad was as well, however, I grew up to be not racist. Not really sure why exactly.

[QUOTE=ImmortalKombat;27294492]That's a terrible thing to say and you should be ashamed of yourself.[/QUOTE] They have made my life horrible.

[QUOTE=kwkws;27294560]They have made my life horrible.[/QUOTE] That doesn't give you the right to say such a horrible and segregationist thing. Edit: Sorry, of course you have the right to say it, but you shouldn't, if you have any regard for humans.

I read an article about a study that found that kids who have parents that talk to them about racism are healthier/less racist than those who are never taught about it.

[QUOTE=Pretiacruento;27293941]All blood runs the same, so I don't give a damn.[/QUOTE] We're all pink inside.

[QUOTE=Passerby Silver;27294557]My Mum is slightly racist and I think my Dad was as well, however, I grew up to be not racist. Not really sure why exactly.[/QUOTE] My mom is the kind of woman that will lower herself in her passenger seat as far is it goes while in a "black neighborhood," but [I]obviously[/I] "loves all of God's people equally." I absolutey despise that mentality - that she isn't doing anything wrong because she [I]thinks[/I] she's not racist. That's one of the biggest problems, is that racism these days is mostly below the radar. People think that most people, including themselves, aren't racist anymore because no ones spitting out "nigger" all over the place. It's simply not the case. Prejudices are just hidden behind the modern day idiot's unbridled optimism.

[QUOTE=ImmortalKombat;27294598]That doesn't give you the right to say such a horrible and segregationist thing. Edit: Sorry, of course you have the right to say it, but you shouldn't, if you have any regard for humans.[/QUOTE] You're trying too hard to find faults in other peoples' statements He may not have worded it well but I got his point, and I'm sure you did, too, that a certain minority group can give the whole group (or in this case, a race) a bad reputation

The only real biological differences between races are from environmental factors.For example, people from sunnier places developed darker pigmentation in their skin in order to cope with that environment. If you're going to discriminate someone for having ancestors that lived in a sunny place, than you're an asshole.

What if different Korean or Chinese people snatched your dog and ate it every time you got a new one? You try to get a new one every week and every single time they eat it. Would you think of them as heartless dog eaters? I honestly hate racism (being a halfie its kind of a big deal for me), but I dont think I can say that I wouldnt have a negative attitude for Koreans or Chinese if such a thing was happening to me.

i'm asian and i grew up around white people(except for my family they were all fobs when i was growing up, my mom wasn't even a citizen yet and i don't think my dad was either, i mean they are now and i remember them getting it) my parents are racist though, they don't see any race as worst they just see themselves as better because that's what they are. they're as racist as anyone who claims they're not racist are

[QUOTE=the343danny;27294839]What if different Korean or Chinese people snatched your dog and ate it every time you got a new one? You try to get a new one every week and every single time they eat it. Would you think of them as heartless dog eaters? I honestly hate racism (being a halfie its kind of a big deal for me), but I dont think I can say that I wouldnt have a negative attitude for Koreans or Chinese if such a thing was happening to me.[/QUOTE] Stop posting.