Helping an Ignorant Society :: Argumentative Persuasive Sociology Essays

Helping an Ignorant Society So many people go through life thinking that someone who is different from them is bad, unintelligent, out of the norm and sometimes even worse. Discrimination occurs all the time because we are so ignorant about our differences. In elementary school children often notice that someone has a different skin color, speaks English funny, or sometimes that people are fat or ugly. The school children make fun of these people because they are different from what they are used to. As you grow older you do not let go of these stereotypes. People put labels on other people and do not realize that they are even discriminating. In our society it is normal to make jokes about different religions and cultures, and no one tries to stop the prejudice. We often hear the phrase its a free country, I will say what I want, if our country is free, then why cant people who are different that your average American be free too? Why do they have to deal with discrimination? Our colleges need to offer a progr am that emphasizes the fact that everyone is different, and teach about our differences. Knowing that we are different will show people that our differences are not bad, but rather, that they are good. As children we love and admire our families. Our parents teach us our morals and values, and we learn what is right from wrong. We are punished when we are bad, and rewarded when we are good. These things make us the people that we are. We all keep our values close to our hearts, as bell hooks points out in her essay Keeping Close to Home: Class and Education, with these words, While I often needed more money, I never needed a new set of beliefs and values(96). No matter how hard our life is at any point in time, our values will stay with us always. That is why education starts from the moment you are born. First you learn through your senses, you see colors and learn to tell the differences from your parents and siblings. You know who you can trust and who is mean. The first five years are the most influential of a childs entire life. Since education starts at this early age, I feel that parents are responsible to teach their children social skills. The parents need to explain why we are all different and that our differences are good, otherwise we would all be exactly the same, and that would be boring.