One
of the most exciting scientific accomplishments of this century is Human Genome
Project which is the cataloging of human genes. This will lead to great
understanding of the human body and advance medical science. One of the most
important findings is that while human beings differ in outward appearance, the
genetic structure of all human beings is 99.9% identical. These researchers
agree that there is only one race, the human race.
However we continue to struggle with the concept of appreciating diversity, and discrimination and prejudice still exist in many forms. For example, you may have been discriminated against because of your ethnic group, religion, height, weight, gender, disability, or even academic skills. For this discussion, give an example of a circumstance where you have experienced or witnessed discrimination. Any ideas on how to reduce discrimination?
I will share an example of discrimination that I experienced. I started my doctoral program at USC when I was 8 months pregnant. After the first class the professor took me aside and suggested that I drop out of the program because of my family situation. I was really angry and decided to show him that I would finish. I am happy to report that I was one of the first three students to finish the program.
At Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. Any comments on this?
This week you can make one post of 200 words (instead of 2 of 100 words each) if you want since the topic of appreciating diversity or describing incidents of discrimination might need more words.
However we continue to struggle with the concept of appreciating diversity, and discrimination and prejudice still exist in many forms. For example, you may have been discriminated against because of your ethnic group, religion, height, weight, gender, disability, or even academic skills. For this discussion, give an example of a circumstance where you have experienced or witnessed discrimination. Any ideas on how to reduce discrimination?
I will share an example of discrimination that I experienced. I started my doctoral program at USC when I was 8 months pregnant. After the first class the professor took me aside and suggested that I drop out of the program because of my family situation. I was really angry and decided to show him that I would finish. I am happy to report that I was one of the first three students to finish the program.
At Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. Any comments on this?
This week you can make one post of 200 words (instead of 2 of 100 words each) if you want since the topic of appreciating diversity or describing incidents of discrimination might need more words.
I will share an example of discrimination that I experienced, but first let’s take a look what discrimination means, it is unequal or different action or harassment that causes harm. The Ontario Human Rights Code is a provincial anti-discrimination law that applies to workplaces, housing, services, facilities, and to contracts or agreements. It is also known as unfair or prejudicial action of different categories of individuals, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex. (Definition) Therefore, we all human. Even though we look different, we are one body, one heart, and one brain. The discrimination exist in all over the world. This is a true story of my life. I never told anyone about it but its ok I would like to share it with you to see how bad discrimination is. One day, in my previous university, I met a beautiful girl. She usually sits on the bench every day. She had the most beautiful smile, face, and speech. I simply fall in love with her. It took me a year to talk to her because I was so fried that she says “No” the second year, I stepped up and decided to talk to her and tell her how I feel about her. Even if she says no, it okay, but I have to tell her. I went and talked to her for an hour. I found out she had the same feeling if no more. We got closer and closer. I never asked if she was Muslim Christian or others because I simply loved her, and I didn’t care about her background. The only thing I cared about is her personality, her looks, her smile etc. after speaking to her. Two years later, I decided to propose to her! We never asked each other what is our background? Who we believe in? Simply we did not care because we loved each other. So, I talked to my family and asked them to help me and go to her family and ask for her hand. My family agreed and that day came. We went over there, and the first question we were asked who are you? What is your religion? What is your background? You look different! We know better guys that can make our daughter live better life. And finally, no we can’t because you are different from us, we know better guys, your religion is this, and we are sorry. I tried so many times, I begged them, but same answer “No” therefore and because of the discrimination, they refuse me. They did not care how good I was, they did not care about our feeling, our love, the only thing they cared about is “I am different” that simple.
ReplyDeleteYour story is heart breaking. I know we are supposed to be appreciating and understanding diversity but there are some things I cannot understand and how religion or appearance is more important than love, respect and good treatment will probably always be beyond my comprehension. You have my deepest sympathies.
DeleteI respect your opinion, but did you ask yourself how sad that girl will be if she said yes even if her family said no? and what the people are going to say about her ? You know that in our country we don't accept that and the same thing is gonna happen vice versa, you know that we don't judge people depending on their religion, but this is simply our tradition.
DeleteThank you Jessica. Likewise, I never got the whole concept. Where we come from, its all about that. Who are you ? What is your religion? Its crazy.
DeleteHello Dina Batros,
Trust me when I used to look at her, I can tell right away if she was mad or happy or something going on. So, I knows how she felt, and I really never cared about what my family or her family say. I cared about her only. But at the same time, I did not want her to run away from her family because you know that is big shame, and As you said, its our cultural and traditions.
This is a sad story and shows a lack of understanding of different cultures. You have to make choices that make you happy and sometimes these choices involve your culture and tradition. We should try to understand and not judge. Thanks for sharing this difficult situation. Hope it all works out for the best for you in the future.
DeleteAt Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. Any comments on this?
ReplyDeleteI think that it is very wrong for people to discriminate because of what race they are. People come from other countries to live a better life not to be made fun of or talked trash to. It is not fair for them they get hurt for something they didn't even do. I see it all the time at cuyamaca, people walk past Arabic people all the time and call them terrorist all the time and that is not fair for the Arabic and Chaldean people. Just because there are Arabic people bombing placing and killing people doesn't mean all Arabic people are bad. People shouldn't be made fun of just because they are a different race and talk different every one in this country should deserve a chance.
People need to put them self in other people shoes to they can see how hard it is for them and see how the feel when they get made fun of or get called names. When I meet people when a different race or can't talk english I treat the same way I would treat anybody else. I am pretty sure they would treat you the same way back.
Lawrence Kasshamoun
I agree that it is a shame for students at Cuyamaca to mistreat others of a different culture. Hopefully when people become more educated they will learn to appreciate others who are different.
DeleteAt Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. I think that the world is facing a big problem in the way they are viewing terrorism. Let’s just think for a second about when did all this attacks and threat happen? It happened after the wars in the Middle East in Syria and Iraq. The refuges tried to emerge from the hazardous situations in the country, they did not care about the way they were emerging. Most of them were good and innocent people and the others were criminals who are trying to make reputation of the Middle East bad in other countries eyes. That does not mean that they are all bad people like other citizens are thinking. In every country in the world there are some good and bad people so they can not base it on one attack. I was here when the attack of 9-11 occurred and the feed back of citizens of the United States was very negative they were blaming the Middle East and Islam about it. Who should innocent people in Iraq who are dying daily blame? America because of the war that occurred 13 years ago and till this day nothing changed. The attach that happened in Paris happen 10 times a day in Iraq and Syria but unfortunately no one makes a big deal about it or tired to find who did it. To me it seems like the world is unfair and people need to use their brains more and look what’s happening outside the United States.
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree that there are good and bad among all peoples. There are many innocent people just trying to escape the war and violence. Glad you made it to this country. There are many good people here.
DeleteAt Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. Any comments on this?
ReplyDeleteThis is wrong in so many ways, this generation/world is all messed up that nobody anyone in this world can be a terrorist. It does suck that the Chaldeans at our school are facing discrimination because of what they’re people have caused but we can’t assume that everyone is like that. I strongly believe that most Middle Eastern should not suffer discrimination because they are humans who were placed in this world to live their lives. This is not okay for those who believe that all Middle Eastern people will attack. I strongly believe that anyone has the power to become a terrorist and yes it does suck that most of them have been Middle Eastern but anyone can do this. Since the 9-11 Middle Eastern people have faced a downfall, yes many people are scared to be around them because they believe something bad will happen except not everyone is like that. We should really start protecting ourselves from everyone not just the Middle Eastern. We Americans assume the worse, which is something that we shouldn’t do. Nobody should be made fun of because they are “different”. People need to live their lives to the fullest and stop all this shenanigans. We were placed in this world for a reason and it wasn’t to hurt other , it was to live it to the fullest and accept everything around us, whether it may be good or bad.
Good thoughts here. We need to see everyone as an individual instead of thinking that all Middle Easterners are the same.
DeleteAt Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism.
ReplyDeletefirst of all, this is so wrong. i dont get how people think in such a way. people should not be judged based on what other people did. being a middle eastern does not mean you are a terrorist. you represent yourself, you dont represent everyone from your culture or religion. and same the other way around. just because the united states believe it was the middle east behind the 9/11 attack, doesnt mean that the guy walking to his class at cuyamaca was part of that attack because he's middle eastern. it's really pathetic when people judge others based on religion or culture. everyone should be treated fairly, and judge based on his/her own actions.
This is a good example of a stereotype in which we judge all people as the same. We need to get to know individuals rather than judge the group.
DeleteAt Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. Any comments on this?
ReplyDeleteFirst of all I want to talk about the discrimination I have experienced when I was in Iraq. After the war on Iraq in 2003, Chaldeans were attacked because of their religion; they were the hated and killed by Iraqis of other religions. I am a Chaldean girl, when I was in Iraq, I felt that I will be killed or kidnapped or my house will be bombed at any moment, we felt the meaning of scare literary, we wished the death in every moment over there before dying on terrorists hands. We lived the worst days of our life ever for 8 years until we left Iraq. When we came here, we felt how different is USA to Iraq, we feel safe in here, no one will kill us for our religion especially after what happened in Paris, I think all people now know that Chaldeans are not terrorists, we are a peaceful people, we always look for peace and love. We never hate people and never hurt them. Being discriminated by others is really awful and makes you feel unsafe however you try to not feel that way. Discrimination is something bad and must not last. We have to accept the differences of others so we can live peacefully. Once the discrimination is finished, the world will be a nice place to live in, no more people will be killed, drowned in the seas while trying to run away from the other’s beliefs, and no more orphans will be found. We always have to remember, that God has created us all the same, but we choose the way we want to be, so we have to look around and try to live the way that God has created us with.
Good thoughts here. Thanks for sharing your experience so that others can understand what you have suffered.
DeleteAn incidence in which I witnessed discrimination was when I was in the bus. The bus driver was a white guy and I was on my way to school. I remember how during one of the times when he stopped, there was a white guy running after the bus. The bus driver noticed him and stopped for him to hop on. A few minutes later the same exact incident happened, except it was not a white guy this time. This time it was a very old African American man. The poor man was running after the bus and as the driver noticed him, he continue to drive away. This is really sad how people discriminate others based on their ethnicity and appearance. Everyone should be treated the same because we are all humans. As mentioned the genetic structure of all human beings is 99.9% identical which means there is only one race and that is the human race. However, not many people see it this way. So many people are influenced by media and others and some believe their culture is superior. This is not right because not only this separates us from others but it doesn't allow us to learn more about heritage and different cultures.
ReplyDeleteThis is a sad story about discrimination. Hopefully we can make some progress in the future and appreciate those who are different.
DeleteMy boyfriend Alex and I are a mixed couple; he is Latino and I’m Caucasian. It is not something that I find to be unusual, as I’m sure most of our generation would agree with me. My mom’s family came from Illinois and moved to San Diego together before I was born. They all have a different mentality than those of us who were raised in California. Before I started dating my boyfriend, I would catch some of my family members making racial jokes at family gatherings. I was just beginning to understand what racism was and it made me uncomfortable when they would make jokes. I won’t lie, I was extremely nervous for my mom’s family to meet Alex because I didn’t want there to be any awkward moments where I would want to leave. Luckily everything went smoothly, and everyone seems to like him. I feel that I cannot address this issue with a solid resolution because it is my family I would be confronting. My cousin is the only one I can really talk to about how uncomfortable it makes me since she’s older and has noticed it for a longer time than me. If anyone can give me some advice I would appreciate it since it looks like Alex will be a part of my family for the long run.
ReplyDeleteHopefully your family can get to know Alex as an individual and gain an appreciation for someone who is different. When people say racist jokes, they should gently be reminded that the jokes are not appreciated.
DeleteIt is sadly ironic that those who fled persecution based on their religious preference came here only to be persecuted based on appearance. What is even worse is that there was a reason for someone to have to leave their home in the first place. I believe that as long as you are not hurting someone, you should be able to believe whatever you want. We should not be persecuted for our beliefs, only our actions, however, in this case I do feel actions include words, if those words truly bring emotional or psychological harm to others. The terrorists believe they are the only true religion and I can't for the life of me understand what kind of god would want people killed or why people would want to practice that religion. Why do people so desperately need to feel superior? Isn't religion supposed to help you feel good without the need to make others feel bad? And what is even more ironic is that they feel those not part of their religion are the bad guys. I know people who think that there are more "bad" people than there used to be. The problem is there are more people in general, so statistically there are more "bad" people, but that means there are also more good people.
ReplyDeleteJessica,
DeleteIt's devastating to judge or even kill someone based on their beliefs and religion. We are all here for a reason, for a purpose, to make something of ourselves and when these judgments come across us, it's hard to ignore and it does get to us but the best thing to do is move on from it. Unfortunately not everyone in this world are good people. ALl we can do is make a great person of ourselves and hopefully inspire someone to do the same.
I think that reasonable people need to stand up for what they believe and that no religion should advocate killing others. I think some are using religion as a way to gain power through fear. Bad news!
DeleteEveryone faces discrimination, it’s sad that we have to go through that but unfortunately in this day and age it still exists. We see it almost every day, especially with the presidential candidates like Donald Trump. He wants every Muslim to wear a ID badge, the same way Nazi Germans did to the Jewish people. This is outrageous and I cannot believe Trump has supporters. I have experienced discrimination numerous times, and I have learned to ignore it and move on because there are lots of ignorant people in this world that we are surrounded by. I’m Kurdish, which a lot of non-middle eastern people think it’s Arabic, or Chaldean, but it’s not. It’s a different culture and language. When people ask what my religion is, I tell them I’m Muslim. Most people back away because they assume that all Muslims are terrorists. Those terrorists have no religion. Nowhere in the Quran has it said it’s okay to kill innocent civilians or anyone in general. Those terrorists are pigs and deserve to be 6 feet under the ground for making families suffer. It makes me so upset and angry that society classifies as one certain group a terrorist. I was born and raised here in San Diego; I am an Kurdish-American with a opened mind and good mindset. If those people actually sat down with me and got to know me maybe their views would change. They say racism still exists and it does. America says we are all equal and all deserve the same respect but this is not the case. There are thousands of Syrians getting killed and want to come here to the states but they want to perform a background check with all those Syrians, which I understand but they are being killed in their own country. All they want is peace and to live a normal life without being scared of terrorism. It’s insane to me that all this is still around. Society has made such a huge impact on us, some good and some bad but all we can do is ignore it.
ReplyDeleteI think we are living in dangerous times when there is much terrorism and people deal with the fear through discrimination. It is sad that Trump and others are talking about registering Muslims. It just shows the cultural ignorance of some in our country. Registration happened in the past and there were horrible results as in Nazi Germany. Hopefully we will not repeat the past.
DeleteDiscrimination takes place all over the world, and some people will not stop discriminating others based off of their looks or their race. I find it unbelievable that racism still exists, especially in Dr. Fralick's case where she showed how now, in San Diego people are continuing to discriminate a race that has nothing to do with any of the attacks that started on September 11th, but even with the tragedy the occurred in Paris. When all the news shows is that it is Middle Easterns who are setting up these attacks is when the Chaldean race in San Diego gets discriminated because people just assume that they are related to these attackers because they come from big families, who might have relatives participating in these ungrateful things. Finally, if people continue to view people in the way they have been doing so for so long, I find it very difficult for our society to find an end to racism, because people do not want to live a more diverse life, even though it would be a much better way of living.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad that this discrimination continues to occur. Let's hope for a better future.
DeleteDiscrimination exists everywhere even though people say it is wrong and d.on't believe people should do it. some friends only hang with their race and diversify themselves from others because the others have different views or different ways of having fun. I may be wrong though in certain circumstances where friends get other friends based on their personality. some will not befriend someone because of what others will say about them hanging with a different group. i faced stereotypes as a mexican and they don't bug me but the fact that people still think they're funny is really childish to me.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad that we still think discrimination is funny. It is not funny at all.
DeleteMy father is an immigrant from El Salvador and I am proud of our heritage but many times people assume I am Mexican and make off color comments and jokes. They often make offensive remarks regarding people of Mexican descent but I also find it offensive that they just assume I could only be of Mexican descent, as if there are no other Latin cultures. When I was in seventh grade a friend of mine and I decided to use the restroom during class but, we were young and excited by the rain that had just ended and decided to run through some mud. A school counselor saw what we were doing and immediately yelled at us to stop. She then proceeded to tell us that we were a disgrace to the Mexican race and how could we represent the Mexican culture in this way. I explained I was not of Mexican descent at all but it was almost as if she didn’t believe me and quite frankly, didn’t care. When my mother found out what had been said and had a meeting with the counselor and the principle, the counselor showed no remorse and continued that she felt I was showing signs of kids who end up in gangs. Little did she know that I was in marching band, had great grades, and I was involved in many after school activities.
ReplyDeleteThis is another sad story about discrimination. Teachers need to be more aware of cultural differences.
DeleteDiscrimination happens anywhere and everywhere you go. Walking around different places and hearing others discriminate against others and treating them differently because they are a different skin color, or have a different belief or just because they wear different clothing. I truly believe it is wrong to discriminate against others especially since you no nothing about that person or the struggles they go through daily. I think it would be right to put yourself in that person shoes and see what they are going through before you are quick to judge. I do not like to be quick to judge others. I think everyone is the same and just trying to do the same exact thing that everyone else is trying to do and that is just trying to be successful in life and create a great future for themselves and get themselves into great opportunities and have an amazing future, great job, have a family or just continuously get better at their goals and whatever they are passionate about.
ReplyDeleteI think you are correct that we are all just trying to find opportunities and a good future. We need to find common ground with others who are different.
DeleteFor this discussion, give an example of a circumstance where you have experienced or witnessed discrimination. Any ideas on how to reduce discrimination?
ReplyDeleteGrowing up I had always faced discrimination because of my religion, learning disability, height, weight, everything and anything you could point out as a flaw of mine, people segregated me because of it. I had grown up a christian in a christian household and that's what started it all. The next was because I had ADHD and was short and thin for my age. I got picked on by bully's everyday and the discrimination didn't stop even in High School, but by then I was used to being an outcast. It wasn't until College that I really had any friends at all. Even still people want to pick a fight with me because I'm shorter than them, thinner than them, slower at learning than them, or even the fact that I refuse to blend in with the crowd. People look down on those who stand out because they are afraid that they are going to be dethroned. I learned slowly that real friends are the ones who support you in everything you do. Sometimes even join you in what your doing.
I think that people look down on others to make themselves feel superior when in fact, they are probably insecure about themselves. Just keep being the best you can be and look around for friends that like the same things.
DeleteAt Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. Any comments on this?
ReplyDeleteI do really have a comment on this post and thanks for letting us share our thoughts. When the attack of Paris happened; people or every single person around the world thought that Middle eastern people are and especially Muslims are responsible about what happened, that’s why we saw them complaining and want them to get out their country, but this is not the truth. Some terrorist might be Muslims and I can’t say something else, but not all Muslims are bad, why would you guy discriminate between people depending on their religion and their background while there was a French terrorist when this attacked happen?
Middle eastern people are not all bad and especially Iraqi people because I know them and I know that half of the Iraqi people are more than nice and good. We do get discriminate when people think that we are bad, but no. We are human, we all have bad and good character whatever country we came from, we think and have heart, we cry and we smile, why would you hate me if you don’t know me and don’t know about my personality?
When I was in the high school, my U.S history teacher used to talk bad about Iraqi and used to treat us bad because she has her own idea about us and she thinks that we are slaves in this country and she could say whatever she wants because she know that we can’t do anything and if we did, they are going to get us out of the country. We still sometimes have the same situations that we had in our country, but we can’t say anything because we just want to live our life in peace.
Thanks for sharing your story of discrimination. I agree that there are good and bad in every group and we should be trying to understand that everyone is different and not put a label on them.
Deletediscrimination happen all over the place everyday. I work at a retail job and i help people from all different religions and backgrounds and i enjoy it, an example that i would give is that one time at work we had a white guy who wanted to return something that was out of the policy and my manger was being so nice to him and he approved it, and the same day we get a chaldean customer who bought a small tv and he simply wanted to exchange it and it was out of the policy as well and my manger would not approve it no matter what even though the customer was being so nice and polite but my manger did not care at all and he send them back. i have probably hundreds of stories about situations that happened to me in real life that involved discrimination. hopefully one day we all look at each other as we're one big family.
ReplyDeleteI agree that we should look at each other as one big family. We are all part of the human race.
DeleteAppreciating diversity is important because knowledge is the key to tolerance. We gain a new perspective on the lives of others around you as well as around the world. Cultural celebrations give students the opportunities to view and maybe understand more about cultures different from there own. Also by learning about other cultures students can develop respect and open-mindedness for other cultures. Its also important to know diversity so that you can overcome ignorance and prejudice. We are all diverse people. And celebrating our differences, as well as our common interests, helps unite and educate us. Another reason is to understand others perspectives, to broaden our own, and to fully experience and educate ourselves. In a word, heritage. People all around need to understand and learn to appreciate other cultures and this is one way to accomplish that. Through each other's diversity we become more aware of our own. Not only do we become more aware we gain a sense of pride for the diversity of our own culture. It's energizing and thought provoking. We live in such an isolated area that we don't often reflect on the diverse people we have all around us. We also get to see how many different forms of music can bring happiness to groups outside of their own traditional roots. And Im pretty sure the most important part of all, to help us all spend some time together--we understand and appreciate each other's cultures so much more! And maybe one day completely stop racism..
ReplyDeleteI love your statement that knowledge is the key to tolerance. As college students, we can all become educated and learn to appreciate others who are different.
DeleteGood Evening,
ReplyDeleteThe topic I will be discussing in the discrimination against Chaldean and Arabic overall. I was once in their shoes when I moved from Jordan to California 5 years ago. People made fun of me, my language, my accent, called me a “boater” and much more. They always asked me if we had cars back in Jordan, and if we came to California using the boat, which comes from the word “boater.” It was honestly ridiculous and pathetic because it showed me how the people that asked me all these questions were very uneducated. We are after all just humans living under the same sky, no matter what language we speak nor what color skin we have, or what country we came from. Each country has its problems and has people who commit terrible things, but we can't view everybody else based on that one person. If some Arabic person committed a murder, the new will go on and on with calling that person a terrorist, but when some American person commits a murder, they accuse him of having mental issues. A lot of people don't notice that on the news because they only like to see one side of the story and leave it there. People shouldn't always believe what they see on the news and stop judging people based on their race, home country, or religion.
Thanks for sharing your story about moving from Jordan to the U.S. People need to understand the difficulties and help refugees to live a better life.
DeleteHowever we continue to struggle with the concept of appreciating diversity, and discrimination and prejudice still exist in many forms. For example, you may have been discriminated against because of your ethnic group, religion, height, weight, gender, disability, or even academic skills. For this discussion, give an example of a circumstance where you have experienced or witnessed discrimination. Any ideas on how to reduce discrimination?
ReplyDeleteI have definitely witnessed discrimination. Over summer when I worked at Indian Hills Camp, we were counselors and I ran games. But I did notice that some kids would discriminate against the other not as athletic kids or the ones that did not want to do anything. They just would like not talk to them or just leave them out whenever we tried to get them to join in. Another example that would happen a lot is that with in the cabin, wagon, or teepee groups a lot of kids would break off in to little groups of friends and a lot of times it would cause a lot of conflict. For example, when I was a Junior High Camp Counselor, I had Sonshine Haven girls and there was a group that was already friends and they came as friends, then there was two sisters that came that were pretty close. Then the next day another girl came and nobody really wanted to include her because she was not there to break the ice the first night and they just did not want to have to deal with the awkwardness of trying to get to know her so I had to get them to all talk.
It is great that you are helping children in a camping situation to get along with others. These are lessons that are valuable throughout life.
DeleteI work with individuals that have developmental disabilities. These are people who are diagnosed with mental retardation, dementia, autism, and many other problems. Many people discriminate against them instead of helping them out. The word retarded is offensive to some people, but used in everyday vocabulary. People who are "retarded" are actually very smart in their own way. They just have a lower do not understand some information in normal ways. I was not at this incident, but a co worker informed me of this happening. Some people and staff from my work went to a local store to hand out free candy on autism awareness day. This was their way of showing support and having individuals with autism go out into the community. A child went to get a piece a candy and the mother pulled the child away and said she could not go near those people. People with developmental disabilities are discriminated against constantly. People seem to be afraid of them, but really they are just like normal people.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad that people discriminate against those with developmental disabilities because of fear.
DeletePrejudice thoughts are tough to avoid. Mankind is flawed, which makes society flawed. People who discriminate have simply not taken the time to do any research to fully understand their judgments. That is why we need to think before we speak. The best anyone can do is to keep prejudice comments to themselves, do not put it out there. What happens is that younger kids will learn from these false judgments, and they will end up passing on hatred. So it is a never ending issue that can be stopped if you are responsible and keep hate comments to yourself. We will never learn from our mistakes if we do not know that we are making mistakes. Everybody is human, which means we not different at all. Opportunities should we accessible to everyone and not be held back because of minor differences.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is important to teach children to value people who are different. In this way the world could be a better place. Sadly many children learn discrimination at home.
DeleteDiscrimination occurs when unequal treatment is given due to the matter of either race, gender, religious differences, age, and more. There are many different occasions on when discrimination would be seen. It is taking place everywhere around the world. Even in local cities, like San Diego. It is strange to think that we all discuss these same topics and agree that discrimination needs to come to an end, yet this dilemma is reoccurring and discrimination is still seen widely amongst one another. I have witnessed discrimination on many occasions. For example, the example about discriminating Chaldeans is a major dilemma that should be taken care of. Many Chaldean students emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Amongst these Chaldeans are innocent Christians who should not be associated with words such as "terrorist." Ever since the attacks that took place on September 11th, they have been victims of discrimination due to the terrorists of the time being middle eastern, and society associating all Middle Easterns with terrorism. I feel that this issue needs to not be taken lightheartedly anymore. Ethnicity and culture should not be stereotyped and many people need to be educated on what the truth behind the matter is. Our community and society needs to come together and see those who are innocent people, despite culture, as one apart of the human race and respect one another.
ReplyDeleteGood thoughts on the need for people to understand different cultures and to realize that we are all part of the human race.
DeleteDiscrimition of course is everywhere, there's no way of really stopping it because people will act out on they're own, and unfortunately when an act of terrisom occurs people take it to heart which culture or ethnicity the person responsible for attacks comes from and unfairly turn on that ethnicity, this is of course wrong, it is not fair in any way to describe all middle eastern as terrorist. A terrorist can be anyone. A terrorist is a human, a human regardless of ethnicity or culture, is someone with harmful intentions, and should be looked at as a human, not a certain race of people, because an American could have done something as horrible as France but you can't brand everyone in the US as killers, no one should be considered something awful just because someone of your culture may have committed an act of terror. Wether it be one man or a thousand man group, whatever they're race, the rest of that ethnicity shouldn't be discriminated for the crimes of others.
ReplyDeleteGood thoughts on the dangers of using stereotypes.
DeleteAt Cuyamaca College, we have many Chaldean students who are Christians who have emigrated from Iraq to avoid religious persecution. Since the attacks of 9-11, this group has faced discrimination at our college and in our community. The issue of terrorism is again in the news with the attacks on Paris. Whenever there is anything about terrorism in the news, many students who are from the Middle East suffer discrimination even though they have nothing to do with terrorism. Any comments on this?
ReplyDeleteDiscrimination takes place all over the world. Being of Middle Eastern/Chaldean decent, I can thankfully say that I have never personally suffered from discrimination due to my culture. However, I can only imagine the pain these Chaldean Christians are facing through discrimination, because instead of being the ones at fault, they are the victims in the situations occurring in Iraq and the Middle East. They have witnessed horrific things and suffered greatly to escape with their families to safer and freer nations. I have learned that sometimes people throw their anger at the wrong people or at the ones they believe to be at fault even though these people have nothing to do with it. People should not be faulted for other people’s mistakes or actions. Throwing blame on others is ignorant and wrong. Respecting and understanding diversity is key to sustaining peace and equality in the world. People need to think before they speak, and put themselves in other people’s shoes, because discrimination hurts. Also, learning to except everyone for who they are can lead to becoming more open minded about different cultures and traditions. Everyone comes from different worlds, acceptance is key.
Good thoughts on appreciating the Chaldean Christians. They really are the victims of violence and should not continue suffering discrimination in our free country.
DeleteUnfortunately it is sad to say that discrimination is an ongoing issue in our country. I find it extremely heartbreaking that others can’t stop making fun of other’s physical appearances and their cultural background. No one should think that their race is superior to others. Everyone should be seen as equals. You would think that racism would have not been existent in the year 2015 but it is sad to say that it continues. Middle Eastern people have constantly been targeted and picked on every since the attacks on September 11th. Just because a certain race did what they did on that day does not make it okay to pick on everyone who happens to be the same race as those people. That is a clear source of discrimination and it is not okay. People should not view anyone differently due to their cultural background. If we all actually took time to maybe learn about other people’s backgrounds the world would be a more happier and peaceful place and we would all feel more connected and the same.
ReplyDeleteGood thoughts on avoiding discrimination and appreciating others.
DeleteThough race isn't supposed to be an issue nowadays, it is still going on. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 gave blacks education and employment,etc. But even though this act happened, we still have racists, and not just against blacks. There are racist people who don't like Arabics and also other ethnic groups. I hear racist jokes in my family all the time. Either my father will talk about the Mexicans crossing the border, or my two uncles will talk about blacks in a jokingly way, but we all know they are not joking. I am not racist myself, I believe that we should all have equality, no matter what gender or race we are. We are all the same, we just have different features, and that's okay. Many people base their beliefs or views on just one person. For example, 9/11 caused many people to discriminate Arabics, even though, not all people of that certain race are like that. Saying all Arabics are terrorists is like saying, all Americans are fat. It's not true. Some people are meaner than others and some are nicer than some. We are only different by our personality, not because of our race. Do I believe that racism will stop? Yes and no. I only have hope for it. I hope humanity will eventually come to the conclusion that we are all the same, and we should treat each other with respect.
ReplyDeleteI do have hope for the future. I think that education plays an important part in helping people to appreciate different cultures. Good thoughts on this topic!
DeleteDiversity is one of the divine virtues that we have to appreciate it is existence because it makes us live and understand people from different culture, it helps us understand others and find out how they think and why they act one way or another, but this difference is one of the main reasons that help the wars and strife especially in my country because of religious differences which are present from thousands of years ago now has become one of the basics of the killing and displacement of minorities; Christian are peace people they just care to provide the basic life needs. these Christians have abandoned their country of origin in search of a new life is not talking about religion does not reduce their value Christian as in Iraq .The majority of Christians are here to live safely, which has not provided their country for them but that does not mean there is no distinction as people coming from Iraq and this is born the idea of some people that these are not educated and non-intellectuals. Hearing them speak another language such as Christianity or Chaldean become the situation is more complex, but they sometimes trying to understand the topic in their own language and this, of course, easier to learn. Sometime other people speak other different language like Spanish, but they do not look to them or get bother of them at the same way they do for Arabic or Chaldean speakers. I think that people always have different ideas based on what they hear and see and , but making decision from the first without looking closer does not have satisfactory results, therefore I hope everyone knows that not all people are the same even if they are in the same religion, whether there are always good and bad.
ReplyDeleteHello class,
ReplyDeleteThis subject can be very tough on all middle easterners. To me it's a joke because people are just being prejudice to a ethnicity based on what they here from the news and social media. People don't really know what is going on. They just here false accusations and just believe them. They don't go out and look for facts or search the internet for the real story. People have the guts to say that all arabs or muslims are terrorist just because a small group of people call themselves arabs or muslims and they go do something like what happened in paris. What happened in paris was wrong and that should never happen to anyone. Back to my point, you cant just go out and say that a entire ethnicity are terrorist just because there are people that claim to part of their ethnicity and go out and do something wrong. Its wrong to do that. For example, just cause there was the KKK and still going on in certain states, that doesn't mean that every white american is racist and they don't like African Americans. Its that small group that people make a big deal about them and accuse the entire race. Another example, if there a Mexican gang related people that go shoot up some hood, does that mean every Mexican is a gang member and they commit violence. No of course not. People like to just listen to what the news has to say and they go with that. They news controls what gets to be put on a screen and what doesn't. Do you think they want people to know the truth around the world. You would be surprised about what the media hides. As a Muslim American, I have had people give my family and I dirty looks, the middle finger, racial comments and much more. I ignore these types of people because there is no point of arguing with them. People just don't know the facts, they are blinded by what the media shows them. Judging a complete ethnicity just by group of people is completely wrong.
Hello class,
ReplyDeleteThis subject can be very tough on all middle easterners. To me it's a joke because people are just being prejudice to a ethnicity based on what they here from the news and social media. People don't really know what is going on. They just here false accusations and just believe them. They don't go out and look for facts or search the internet for the real story. People have the guts to say that all arabs or muslims are terrorist just because a small group of people call themselves arabs or muslims and they go do something like what happened in paris. What happened in paris was wrong and that should never happen to anyone. Back to my point, you cant just go out and say that a entire ethnicity are terrorist just because there are people that claim to part of their ethnicity and go out and do something wrong. Its wrong to do that. For example, just cause there was the KKK and still going on in certain states, that doesn't mean that every white american is racist and they don't like African Americans. Its that small group that people make a big deal about them and accuse the entire race. Another example, if there a Mexican gang related people that go shoot up some hood, does that mean every Mexican is a gang member and they commit violence. No of course not. People like to just listen to what the news has to say and they go with that. They news controls what gets to be put on a screen and what doesn't. Do you think they want people to know the truth around the world. You would be surprised about what the media hides. As a Muslim American, I have had people give my family and I dirty looks, the middle finger, racial comments and much more. I ignore these types of people because there is no point of arguing with them. People just don't know the facts, they are blinded by what the media shows them. Judging a complete ethnicity just by group of people is completely wrong.
I have experienced discrimination in my life; not as much as other people I'm sure but some none-the-less. Something that is unfortunately reoccurring in my life is the discrimination that I receive at work. Over the past 11.5 years while I've been at Dixieline, I have faced interesting times with many customers. A lot of which always have something to complain about, especially the fact that I am a young woman working in a hardware store. I have constantly heard things like, "I will wait for a man" or "no I don't need help (who waiting for a man to become free)." I have learned over the years not to let it get to me, so I can look past it but every now and then it hurts. Another huge problem that happens at my work is how there is no room in management for women. I honestly never considered going that direction until recently, but I haven't been able to move forward because of the lack of confidence in a woman in such position. Not everyone I have come into contact with has been that way though. My old branch manager happened to be our district manager at the time and he actually gave me an opportunity to be a night supervisor for one of our remodels. That was an interesting experience, but regardless it was experience under my belt. And even though I did a great job, my current branch manager felt that he couldn't promote me to a weekend supervisor at our store because he "doesn't feel comfortable with me closing the store by myself at night." I insisted it was fine leaving at 7pm and that I would leave the night supervisor job any where from 10pm to 3am in the morning. But instead, he promoted a fellow co-worker (who is a man) that I happen to coach on the days that I work. Funny how that works out, I know. And last but not least, my favorite, the reason I was held back from going into a door and window position. This wasn't because I am a woman but because of the fact that I have kids and was pregnant at the time. I sat down at my interview, 4 or 5 months pregnant, for a brand new training program that was kicking into action and the first thing out of the interviewers mouth was "so, are you planning on having any more kids?" I just don't have enough words for that one.
ReplyDeleteWith all of that happening to me, I do think that there are ways for us to overcome discrimination. I think that it might actually start in childhood. The way we lead our children can impact the way they think in the future, not totally, but we influence our kids in a huge way. I'm not so sure if adults can change, I know some can, but when it concerns hateful thinking, I know it is very hard for people to overcome those thoughts.