Stereotypes

When was the last time you looked at a stranger and said to yourself, “Oh my, this one is up to no good” based on what he/she looked like' At one time or another, the majority of us have done it. We see a certain group of people and automatically think we know exactly what they are about based on what society has embedded into our minds. In a nutshell, that is stereotyping which is judging a book by its cover. A stereotype is a fixed, commonly held belief, notion or image of specific social groups, or types of individuals. It is based on the generalization of some observed or imagined trait of behavior or appearance. Stereotype, in most cases, reflects perception that certain groups of people hold about others who are different from them. In today’s day and age there are so many different types of stereotyping. There are racial and ethnic stereotyping, gender stereotyping, sexually-oriented stereotypes, and socio-economic stereotypes. Racial and ethnic stereotyping usually includes the type of race or races one belongs to. In example, all Mexicans are lazy stereotypes all of them. Just because of one or two bad apples in the barrel, the whole batch is ruined. Gender stereotyping includes masculine, feminine, and/or transgender. In example, all women are bad drivers. Sexually-oriented stereotypes include gay, lesbian, and bisexual. Socio-economic stereotypes pertain to the classes such as homeless, lower class, working class, and upper-class depending on how much income one brings into the household. Politicians are in the public eye twenty-four hours a day seven days a week whether we like it or not. They are fighting to make the country a better, more stable place to live. They have probably the worst stereotype generalization of being hypocritical, dishonest, backstabbing, bribe-accepting, con-artists who are in it for the popularity contest that America calls our government. Politicians are viewed in a negative light and there are many truths to this concept that they only think of themselves and those like them. Feminists are often stereotyped as being man-hating, tree-hugging lesbians. In most cases they are lesbians but there are also heterosexual females who are feminists as well. Feminists are seen in both a positive and negative light depending on who you talk to. Feminists are strong-minded women who aren’t afraid to stand up for what they believe in. Feminist activists have campaigned for women's rights, such as in contract, property, and voting all while also promoting women's rights to reproductive rights. They have opposed domestic violence, sexual harassment, and sexual assault. In economics, they have advocated for workplace rights, including equal pay and opportunities for careers and to start businesses. Most men would see them in a negative light because they are intimidated by them. Women on the other hand would see them in a positive light because of all that they have fought for. Senior citizens are stereotyped as being forgetful, slow, hard of hearing and unable to drive as well as they used to then they were younger. These generalizations in most cases are true because of the aging process and are also called ageism. On the contrary there are some individuals who take very good care of themselves and are able to drive just fine and have fine-tuned motor skills well into their nineties. With senior citizens being stereotyped as they are they feel that they need to depend on others even though they may be full and able to do it on their own only because they have been told that they’re too old. For senior citizens, they are seen in a negative light. People generalize all of them as being old and weak and hard of hearing. With all these derogatory statements there is no way that they could be seen as positive because they are no longer independent. Tattooed persons have received the most negative press. According to most people, tattooed people are uneducated, either gang-members or drug addicts, if not both and are also considered rebels and sadists. It is against nature and religion to have one’s body covered in ink. Getting tattoos is a personal form of expression. Each person gets a tattoo for a different reason. It’s the fact that they choose to stand out in the crowd that ostracizes them from society. The majority of people nowadays have tattoos from celebrities to politicians to CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. The reason that they are not ridiculed in most cases is because their tattoos are discretely hidden from public view. In older times, tattoos were considered a rite of passage and would mark your social rank as well, now they are shunned. How the times have changed. It’s sad that from these different stereotypes the one that is now used more often since the September Eleventh attacks is racial profiling. If you look Middle Eastern then you’re out to get our country and kill our citizens. In most cases again not true at all. Those people are coming to America to get a better life. One bad apple ruined the rest. Arizona has their own form of racial profiling as well. They are wanting for anyone who looks of Mexican descent to show proof that they indeed are American. Our congressman Solomon Ortiz has to show proof every week that he is American and that’s because he is a member of our own government. Stereotyping people can be funny to some people while hurtful to those that are being stereotyped. Every race has their own stereotypes and that doesn’t make it right at all. When one people step out of the shadow of society and start thinking for themselves, they will see people in a fair light so that they can form their own opinion of how they really feel. References Moore, B. N., & Parker, R. (2007). Critical Thinking, Ashford University 8th. Ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill. Green, W. D. (2009). Politicians, Tattooed People, Feminists and the Elderly: A Rhetorical and Stereotypical Essay. Retrieved February 1, 2011 from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1810522/politicians_tattooed_people_feminists.html'cat=7 Smith, S. (2009). The Effects of Rhetoric and Stereotyping. Retrieved January 31, 2011, from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1357760/the_effects_of_rhetoric_and_stereotyping.html'cat=4 n.a. (2007) What is a stereotype' Retrieved on February 1, 2011, from http://babyboomercaretaker.com/elderly-law/age-discrimination/stereotype/What-Is-A-Stereotype.html