Article...Our Prejudice Hides in Plain Sight

"Our Prejudice Hides in Plain Sight":

Once I watched a documentary about the extinct Marsupial wolf - the Thylacine. It seems around the turn of the century that farmers thought the Thylacines ate their sheep.

Apparently, there was some evidence that a few of them were hungry enough to eat a few sheep.

When the cattle started to die off of other causes, they wrongly accused ALL the Thylacine wolves of the crime and soon the entire species sadly went extinct!

What does this have to do with prejudice? - a whole lot.

You see, we humans have a very serious knack for making mistakes about other living things, even ourselves - we take the wrong-doing of the very few and blame and hate the majority - as seen with the poor Thylacine wolf.

Today, we do the same thing, but to our own species...

I explained this “hidden-in-plain-sight” aspect of our prejudice to some people recently and they were genuinely astonished.

What I pointed out that other people have not was a very true part of WHY ordinary people have to face prejudice feelings in ourselves over and over again.

Here is why… Every race has a certain “deplorable” sub-culture. Now I want you to really think about this AND be HONEST with yourself.

For an example, I will bring up 3 races and point out the 3 “deplorable” cultures in each race.

For Hispanics it is the “Gang-banging Cholo” sub-culture… Sure, they are gang-bangers of all types all over the world, but with Latinos, they have a certain way of talking, their own slang and terminology and their own street traditions – these qualify them as a sub-culture.

For African Americans; It is the “Drug-Rats” those guys that sell drugs and run their hoods – once again, they have their own specific way of talking and traditions and so on.

For White people; it’s the "Trailer-Trashers” – not actually people that live in trailers, but the guys who give these trailer communities a bad name – drunkin’ drugged-out riff raff – who once again, have their own way of talking and terminology and traditions.

Now, do see where I am going with this?

Let me explain – a white guy goes to a store and gets harassed by a Black “Drug-Rat”. Later he’s very upset about it and feels the compulsion to hate Black people.

Why?

It’s not that he hates Black people, but that he hates that certain sub-culture that is associated with Black people.

If a black guy goes into a Latino neighborhood, and a bunch of Cholos heckle him or rob him, he comes back to his home angered over Latinos.

Why?

It is not that he hates Latinos, it’s because he hates that sub-culture that wronged him – and unfortunately, yes, indeed, these sub-cultures DO identify themselves with each particular race.

So most of the time, we have to fight a prejudice feeling in our lives, we are actually fighting the hatred of these “deplorable” sub-cultures that exist in every racial region, but NOT the actual race itself.

Deplorable sub-cultures in every race play a wicked sort of mind trick on us, forcing hatred and prejudice compulsions that are not aimed at the right people.

Ask yourself, when was the last time you were upset and angry with an African-American Doctor? Or a Latina Teacher? Or a White nurse?

Chances are you were NEVER upset or angry over these types of people, because they are good people and not “deplorable” – as in not criminals or drug addicts…

It could safely be said, that about 90 percent of all racial hatred is actually aimed at the “deplorable” sub-cultures, but unfortunately, they are associated with the good races they reside in.

I hope the next time you get that feeling of prejudice in yourself, you can think back about this and know that it’s NOT any particular race you are angry with, but that PARTICULAR sub-culture that makes the race look bad.

Only then can you free yourself from being “tricked” into hatred by criminals and riff raff that try to make their racial heritage seem deplorable.

Don’t be fooled by these feelings and incidents – if a man of any race harms you, remember it is the man that did this to you and NOT the race he embodied.

There are Good and Bad people in every race and it would be wise to remember that…

--Dark Riddle