Prejudice​—Everyone’s Problem

“WHY don’t you come on in tomorrow?” asked the prospective employer. “I’m sure we can fix you up with a job.” Yvonne hung up the phone, confident that the job was hers. Office work was going to be a nice change of pace from the housekeeping jobs she had done since quitting college.

Arriving for her new job the next day, Yvonne found the woman she had spoken to over the phone and introduced herself. But as the woman again heard Yvonne’s “odd” last name, this time connecting it with her obviously Oriental features, the woman’s jaw dropped. “She nervously hemmed and hawed,” recalls Yvonne, “and finally she told me there was no job available.” But Yvonne knew why it was back to scanning the “help wanted” ads: racial prejudice.

Whose Problem?

Talk of prejudice understandably makes most of us feel a bit uneasy. Few topics are so controversial​—or emotional. Nevertheless, it cannot be ignored or shrugged away as if it were someone else’s problem. Bias infects almost every sphere of human relationships. Long-held myths of male superiority sentence many women to low wages and minimal job opportunities. Religious differences fuel violence in Ireland. French-speaking Canadians clash with their English-speaking countrymen. In India, though the caste system is outlawed, caste Hindus refuse to walk on the same side of the street as “Untouchables.” European social levels based on wealth and traditional prestige pit upper classes against commoners. Even in countries such as Brazil, where black and white mingle freely, some observers report an undercurrent of racial hostility.

Exaggerated cultural pride erects barriers even among members of the same race, as illustrated by the experience of Kalu and Dupe. Though both native Nigerians, Dupe’s mother (of the Yoruba tribe) forbade her to marry someone from the Igbo tribe. Kalu’s father likewise rejected Dupe, saying: “If you marry a Yoruba girl, do not consider yourself my son.”

Prejudice is therefore more than an issue of race or a conflict of black versus white. It is a seemingly universal reaction to different languages, cultures and social levels. And whether erupting into violence or simmering below the boiling point, prejudice can have painful consequences: poverty, harassment, loss of human dignity for its victims, and pangs of guilt and a troubled conscience for a majority of its perpetrators. Where prejudice exists, so too does a climate of fear, uncertainty and anxiety. Whole areas are declared off limits because of racial tension. Potential friendships are poisoned by needless distrust and misunderstanding.

Prejudice, therefore, truly is “everyone’s problem.” But from where does prejudice come? Why have man’s best efforts to eradicate it failed? In order to gain some insight into these questions, let us focus on a widespread form of prejudice: racial bias.

The Workings of Prejudice

A researcher asked a man his opinion of a certain ethnic group. “They are moody and quick-tempered,” he replied. “It is in their blood.”

“Have you ever known any . . . personally?” the man was asked.

‘Yes, one. He was our class president in high school.’

‘Did this “class president” fit your image of them?’

“No,” he admitted, “he was calm and pleasant.”

‘Then the “moodiness and quick temper” could not really have been “in his blood,” could they?’

After a pause the man replied: “He was an exception.”

TO BE prejudiced (to “prejudge”) is to judge others without giving them the benefit of a fair trial. A perfect stranger is thus summarily pronounced “lazy,” “devious” or “dangerous” without any evidence, only a preconceived idea. This is because the biased person sees, not individuals, but groups. To him, members of an ethnic group are “all alike,” clones, with no individuality. And as in the example above, the prejudiced one will often defend his bias to the bitter end, even when the facts prove him wrong. As the magazine Psychology Today noted, prejudiced people “tend to notice and remember the ways in which [a] person seems to fit the stereotype, while resisting evidence that contradicts the stereotype.”

Prejudice feeds on itself. People cast into an unfavorable mold so often lose their self-esteem that they actually live up to low expectations. Or what the Bible says at Ecclesiastes 7:7 results: “For mere oppression may make a wise one act crazy.” Victims of oppression can become consumed with resentment. They can become so sensitized to bias that they at times overreact and see prejudice where none really exists. Any person of another race is viewed either with undue suspicion or as a potential enemy. Bigotry is thus not monopolized by any one race or nationality.

Once prejudice gets a hold on a person’s thinking, he can find himself disliking just about all ethnic groups. Some college students were once asked to express their feelings toward 32 real nations and races plus 3 fictitious groups (“Daniereans,” “Pireneans” and “Wallonians”). Strange as it may seem, students who were prejudiced against real ethnic groups found “Daniereans,” “Pireneans” and “Wallonians” just as distasteful.

Prejudice​—How Manifested?

A prejudiced person is not necessarily hostile. Nor is he necessarily like the man who hypocritically declares that ‘some of his best friends’ belong to this or that group but recoils at the thought of having such ones as neighbors​—or in-laws. There are degrees of bias. A prejudiced individual may indeed have friends of another race but ever so subtly reveal lingering feelings of superiority. He may try their patience by making tasteless, racially oriented remarks. Or rather than treating them as equals, he might assume a patronizing air, acting as though by making them his friends he is conferring a favor upon them.

Another way a person reveals prejudice is by demanding a higher standard of performance from certain ones, though giving them less recognition. And if such ones fail, he might be prone to attribute the failure to reasons of race. Or he may condemn in one race conduct that he tolerates in his own. Nevertheless, such a person would fiercely resent any suggestion that he is prejudiced, so complete is the self-deception. As the psalmist once said: “He has acted too smoothly to himself in his own eyes to find out his error so as to hate it.”​—Psalm 36:2.

“By the Time They Are Four Years Old”

Why, though, do people become prejudiced? How early in life is prejudice acquired? In his classic work entitled The Nature of Prejudice, social psychologist Gordon W. Allport noted the tendency of the human mind to “think with the aid of categories.” This is apparent even in small children. They soon learn to discern between men and women, dogs and cats, trees and flowers​—and even “black” and “white.” Contrary to the notion that small children are “color blind,” researchers agree that toddlers exposed to a variety of races will soon begin noticing “differences in physical attributes such as skin color, facial features, hair types, and so forth. Children . . . generally achieve full awareness of racial groups by the time they are four years old.”​—Parents magazine, July 1981.

But does simply noticing these differences make children prejudiced? Not necessarily. A recent study reported in Child Development, however, claimed that “5-year-olds enter kindergarten with clear preferences for interacting with same-color peers.” Even more disturbing was the observation that “the tendency of children to select play partners of the same color increases during the kindergarten year.” (Italics ours.) Other researchers have similarly concluded that small children are often aware not only of race but also of the implications of race. A four-year-old girl named Joan once made this chilling statement: “The people that are white, they can go up. The people that are brown, they have to go down.”

How children develop such bias is a puzzle to researchers. Strongly suspect, though, is the influence of a child’s parents. True, few parents may directly order their children not to play with children of another race. Nevertheless, if a child observes that his parents are biased toward or just ill at ease with someone of another race, he might similarly assume negative attitudes himself. Cultural differences, peer and media influence, and other factors can then combine to reinforce this prejudice.

Bad Experiences

For some people, though, prejudice appears to be an overreaction to a bad experience. One young German woman accompanied her husband on a work project in Africa. There she ran into problems. She felt that some of the people were prejudiced against her both as a woman and as a European. The attitudes of some also shocked her Europe-bred sensibilities. Dwelling on the problems caused by just a few resulted in her coming to dislike all black people!

Likewise with a West Indian student who was living in the United States some 20 years ago. Although neatly dressed and courteous, he was refused service in a restaurant, being told: “We do not serve people like you here.” Not having previously been exposed to racial discrimination and unaware of the racial tensions existing at the time, he tried to demand service​—resulting in his immediate arrest! Although the mayor of the city ordered his release and reprimanded the police, this incident embittered him. Years later he still harbors animosity against white people.

In other cases, as pointed out in The Nature of Prejudice, putting others down seems to gratify man’s insatiable hunger for status. It is to ‘think more of himself than is necessary.’ (Romans 12:3) Myths of racial superiority might also be developed so as to “justify” the oppression of a certain group. For example, during the infamous years of the slave trade in the United States, it was popular for blacks to be declared mentally inferior, or subhuman. So common were these beliefs that even American President Thomas Jefferson, an outspoken critica of slavery, once expressed a “suspicion” that “the blacks . . . are inferior to the whites in the endowment both of mind and body.” Though science has proved such notions untenable, racism lingers.

Why? The most basic reason is clearly shown in the Bible, though overlooked by researchers: “That is why, just as through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all sinned.” (Romans 5:12) Inherited sin has warped the way man thinks and views matters. Rather than be intrigued or delighted by differences, man reacts with fear and insecurity. And even out of a small child’s imperfect heart there can come a frightening array of “wicked reasonings” that grow into destructive prejudices. (Matthew 15:19) Is it possible, then, for prejudice to be conquered?

[Footnotes]

[Blurb on page 6]

Dwelling on the problems caused by just a few resulted in her coming to dislike all people of another color!

[Picture on page 5]

Prejudice can cause people to be suspicious of one another

Prejudice Can Be Conquered!

PREJUDICES, according to sociologist Frederick Samuels, “become a basic part of an individual’s personality structure . . . They involve his self-esteem, his self-image . . . It would be as difficult to surrender certain attitudes and group images as it would be to surrender an arm or a leg.”

Many, though, imagine that if the races could just be made to work together and get to know one another, prejudice would somehow vanish. Unfortunately, this works somewhat better in theory than in practice. Integration at times boomerangs and amplifies racial hostilities. On the other hand, consider one integrated school in the southern part of the United States. There black and white students work together in relative peace. An end of prejudice? The authors of Desegregated Schools: Appraisals of an American Experiment observe that students still choose to sit with and almost exclusively socialize with members of their own race. “Informal segregation,” researchers call it.

Racial harmony is therefore often little more than peaceful coexistence. If the different races are ever to learn to love and understand one another, more will have to be done than merely bringing them in contact with one another. But what? The United Nations made a feeble attempt by sponsoring the “Second World Conference to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination.” (August 1-13, 1983) But as expected, all that came of it were more theories and high-sounding rhetoric.

New Perspectives on Race and Nationality

People are not about to relinquish their deep-seated attitudes and prejudices unless they have powerful motivation to do so. And for many thousands such motivation has developed through studying the Bible. It can reach hearts and move to action like no other book in the world. “For the word of God is alive and exerts power.” (Hebrews 4:12) Suppose, for example, that you were one who harbored animosity toward a certain race or nationality. If you began studying the Bible, you would soon realize that it teaches that “God does not go by a man’s outward appearance,” “but in every nation the man that fears him and works righteousness is acceptable to him.”​—Galatians 2:6; Acts 10:34, 35.

Accepting that God “made out of one man every nation of men,” is bound to make you reevaluate your views toward people of other races. (Acts 17:26) How can one view as inferior people with different skin color, hair texture and shape of eyes and nose that are characteristic of different races if he has developed a friendship with God who created out of one man every nation of men?

True, the different races seem to have prominent personality traits​—good and bad. The Bible, however, cautions: “Keep these things without prejudgment [“prejudice,” Today’s English Version], doing nothing according to a biased leaning.” (1 Timothy 5:21) A Christian thus lets each one “prove what his own work is” rather than judge a man’s worth by his color or race.​—Galatians 6:4.

The apostle Paul, for example, noted that the inhabitants of Crete had the unsavory reputation of being “liars, injurious wild beasts, unemployed gluttons.” (Titus 1:12) This did not mean, however, that these traits were somehow inherent or that they existed in all Cretans. For Paul instructed Titus to search there in Crete for men who had risen above this and appoint such ones to responsible positions in the congregation.​—Titus 1:5.

Admittedly, it is tempting at times to conclude that certain ethnic traits are “in the blood.” A certain racial group, for example, may have a number of idle and unemployed members. ‘They’re just lazy,’ some hastily conclude. A Christian, though, has compassion for people. He realizes that many are “skinned and thrown about” by this vicious, uncaring world. (Matthew 9:36) Why, in many lands racial bias and economic conditions lock people out of suitable jobs! So, what often appears to be laziness turns out to be hopelessness and despair. Such ones need spiritual help and understanding​—not harsh criticism.

This brings to mind the apostle Paul’s counsel to do everything with “lowliness of mind considering that the others are superior to you.” (Philippians 2:3) Accepting this advice may require a radical change in one’s thinking. As in the first century, many feel “superior” because they have a secular education or high social standing. Yet Paul reminded first-century Christians that “God chose the foolish things of the world . . . and the things looked down upon.” (1 Corinthians 1:26-28) These lowly ones had a humility and sincerity that in God’s eyes made them “superior.” Can a person be prejudiced if he takes this godly view of others?

On the Receiving End

On the other hand, perhaps you have for a long time been the victim of prejudice and realize that few indeed will ever try to overcome their biases. The Bible can help you appreciate that it is futile to expect justice in this present, crooked social order. “That which is made crooked cannot be made straight,” said Solomon. (Ecclesiastes 1:15) God therefore has promised to eradicate all injustices eventually, and knowledge of this can be a real source of comfort to you!​—Psalm 37:1-11; 72:12-14.

For the time being, though, you may need to find ways to cope with prejudice. In response to bigotry, some develop a prejudice of their own, concluding that everyone of another race is biased. They become overly sensitive, taking offense at the most innocent of remarks. The Bible, however, warns at Ecclesiastes 7:9: “Do not hurry yourself in your spirit to become offended.” Learn to give others the benefit of the doubt and you’ll spare yourself much irritation.

Recall, too, that Jesus often experienced rejection from his Jewish countrymen. Yet he encouraged his disciples to approach people optimistically. “Wherever you enter into a house,” Christ said, “say first, ‘May this house have peace.’” (Luke 10:5, 6) Surely it is better to approach people with the expectation and desire of having peace than to arm yourself emotionally for conflict.

What, though, if you are a victim of injustice, like one Nigerian couple whose prospective landlord in England reneged on a promise to rent them an apartment? (People complained they did not want to have black neighbors.) What an affront to a person’s dignity! The Bible nonetheless cautions against “forcing one another to a showdown.” (Galatians 5:26; footnote of 1984 New World Translation, Reference Bible) This usually serves only to entrench bias and hate more deeply. And responding with anger usually just makes a bad situation worse.

Jesus gave this advice: “Do not resist him that is wicked; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek [acts insultingly toward you], turn the other also to him.” Paul adds: “Return evil for evil to no one . . . If possible, as far as it depends upon you, be peaceable with all men. . . . Do not let yourself be conquered by the evil, but keep conquering the evil with the good.” (Matthew 5:39-44; Romans 12:17-21) Responding to hatred with kindness takes real moral strength. But by refusing to let bigotry fill you with resentment, you rise above it.

Seeking the Advantage of Others

One Jamaican bride learned yet another lesson about conquering prejudice. When her African husband’s family more or less ostracized her, she started looking at things from their viewpoint. She recalls: “I saw that the finger of prejudice could also be pointed toward me. I wouldn’t wear their clothes, disliked their food and made no effort to learn their language. So I decided to try to learn some expressions in their language. Whenever I said anything in their language, they would respond enthusiastically: ‘Ah, you are becoming one of us now!’”

Yes, one loses nothing and gains a lot by honoring the wholesome aspects of other people’s cultures. Thus if you come from a country where people tend to be spirited, make some adjustments if you move to a country where people tend to be reserved. The Bible says appropriately: “Let each one keep seeking, not his own advantage, but that of the other person.” (1 Corinthians 10:23, 24, 31-33) Remember, it is selfishness and intolerance that are often at the root of prejudice.

Prejudice Conquered!

The Bible is therefore full of practical counsel that can help individuals both to conquer and to cope with prejudice. Doing so is not always easy, even for devout Christians. Consider what happened some time ago during an intermission at a convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses. A woman carrying a tray of food bumped into a chair and spilled her drink all over another woman’s legs. This might have seemed insignificant except for one fact: One woman was black, the other white.

The brief but angry exchange that followed revealed a pent-up racial animosity. Under ordinary circumstances an apology might have been out of the question! With the aid of an onlooker, these two women were reminded that they were Christians. They knew racial prejudice was wrong and that they could not remain in God’s favor if they did not make peace with each other. (1 John 4:20) It was touching indeed to see these two women tearfully embrace and apologize to each other. More importantly, they put the incident behind them and conversed like old friends.

Jehovah’s Witnesses have thus taken great strides toward eliminating bias. See for yourself. There are literally millions of them who bear living testimony to the fact that God’s Word indeed has power​—power enough to conquer even prejudice.

[Blurb on page 8]

How can you view as inferior people of different races when God “made out of one man every nation of men”?

[Blurb on page 10]

Responding to hatred with kindness takes real moral strength

[Blurb on page 10]

By refusing to let bigotry fill you with resentment, you rise above it

[Picture on page 9]

Studying the Bible forces a person to reevaluate his feelings toward people of different races