I had made a remark on a fellow bloggers post and was surprised to receive a response. She was asking for further elaboration on my offhand remark. I don't believe I hurt her feelings or caused any consternation , that was not the intent. But it was an eye opener for me. Like a lot of us I believe I am not prejudiced or stereotyping people. Truth is, I am. If you look the word prejudice up in the dictionary it says, a preconceived idea or opinion, usually unfavorable, about a person ,group, or race.
Now I don't think my opinion is this case was unfavorable, but it was definitely prejudiced. And the prejudice had nothing to do with race or ethnicity. The prejudice was in regard to a lifestyle. And I must admit I know nothing of this lifestyle but what I have read or seen on television. The thing is most of the writings were done by people not belonging to the group being written about and they surely didn't produce the television shows either.
This lifestyle choice has nothing to do with sexual orientation. A topic you hear about all the time nowadays. This lifestyle is a bit secretive. Anything kept private, is a secret to others. Sometimes we forget about that and that leads to preconceived ideas, hence the prejudice.
No, I don't think any harm was done. My prejudice in regard to this group is not of the malicious variety. Quite the opposite really. My curiosity about this group has only been heightened by this experience. This incident has made me realize I'm not quite as prejudice free as I had thought. I'll have to work on that.
By reading her blog posts I beginning to understand some things about this lifestyle. As with most everything it is not as cut and dried as one would expect. That is where the stereotyping comes in. Although each unit identifies with a central belief, the practice and execution of that belief varies widely. What applies to one does not necessarily apply to another. Things are rarely as we see them.
I'm glad for this little eye opener. I'm getting older and we all know how old people can get set in their ways. I hope to prevent that from happening to me. I can't stop the aging process on a physical level but I can strive to keep my mind open and working ! My opinion of this particular group has already been altered. I now know I really know nothing about it. Most of what I do know is probably not very accurate and almost all of it highlights the positive side. I would like to see the negative side as well. The pros and cons as it were.
I have chosen to not spell out what this lifestyle choice is. I'm sure some of my readers will know instantly what I'm talking about. To those that may not, it really makes little difference. The point is, Prejudice isn't always malicious. Anytime we presume to know the mind of another, whether it be an individual or group, the door to prejudice is opened. Ignorance breeds prejudice.
Now I don't think my opinion is this case was unfavorable, but it was definitely prejudiced. And the prejudice had nothing to do with race or ethnicity. The prejudice was in regard to a lifestyle. And I must admit I know nothing of this lifestyle but what I have read or seen on television. The thing is most of the writings were done by people not belonging to the group being written about and they surely didn't produce the television shows either.
This lifestyle choice has nothing to do with sexual orientation. A topic you hear about all the time nowadays. This lifestyle is a bit secretive. Anything kept private, is a secret to others. Sometimes we forget about that and that leads to preconceived ideas, hence the prejudice.
No, I don't think any harm was done. My prejudice in regard to this group is not of the malicious variety. Quite the opposite really. My curiosity about this group has only been heightened by this experience. This incident has made me realize I'm not quite as prejudice free as I had thought. I'll have to work on that.
By reading her blog posts I beginning to understand some things about this lifestyle. As with most everything it is not as cut and dried as one would expect. That is where the stereotyping comes in. Although each unit identifies with a central belief, the practice and execution of that belief varies widely. What applies to one does not necessarily apply to another. Things are rarely as we see them.
I'm glad for this little eye opener. I'm getting older and we all know how old people can get set in their ways. I hope to prevent that from happening to me. I can't stop the aging process on a physical level but I can strive to keep my mind open and working ! My opinion of this particular group has already been altered. I now know I really know nothing about it. Most of what I do know is probably not very accurate and almost all of it highlights the positive side. I would like to see the negative side as well. The pros and cons as it were.
I have chosen to not spell out what this lifestyle choice is. I'm sure some of my readers will know instantly what I'm talking about. To those that may not, it really makes little difference. The point is, Prejudice isn't always malicious. Anytime we presume to know the mind of another, whether it be an individual or group, the door to prejudice is opened. Ignorance breeds prejudice.
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