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prejudice reflection

Reflections on prejudice

                Prejudice is a pre-judgment of a person without sufficient evidence to prove the prejudice true or accurate. Prejudice is mental, non-physical but extremely common. This is one of the flaws in the human nature. Racial prejudices, social prejudices, institutional prejudices are all included. I feel that prejudice is although unavoidable mentally, is able to stop from being turned into physical discrimination. Examples of prejudices are also extremely common in Singapore. From refusing to share a table with someone of a different racial group, to students from rival schools refusing to talk to each other, or even show basic courtesy, these are all examples of different prejudices that one may hold against another.

                 However, I doubt many have cleared their own mind enough to see that prejudices need not be turned into stereotyping and discriminating. Racial discrimination is also chargeable as racism under the international law, and what is so wrong as to share a table with someone of a different racial group?

                Also, must rival schools really be so hostile to each other? Truth be told, the prejudices between schools need not exist. Friendly competition is rather healthy, but when it turns into rivalry, then the relationship has really gone too far out of balance. Also, quite frankly, I have also observed students from rival schools actually get together and help each other, and not try to sabotage the other party’s work. Besides, having such prejudices might tear down Singapore’s defense in the future, when the current generation takes over. They might refuse to cooperate just because of their personal prejudices against a colleague, or comrade because they were from rival institutions. Singapore would then be very weak against enemies, should there be a war.

                All in all, I believe that discrimination is unnecessary, but stereotype and prejudice and unavoidable.

prejudice

            “Jeremy, you’ve never seen Arthur before, so how do you know how he looks like?” I asked my younger brother. He had a new classmate, Edward, and the teacher had instructed Jeremy to stay with Edward to get him used to the school. Jeremy’s cheeks flushed red, and he refused to meet my eye. Jeremy had just told Edward about Arthur, who was a lonely boy who lived down the street. However, he had a private education, and was forbidden to come out of his house, lest, as his mother feared, he created trouble.

            Jeremy quickly changed the subject, to avoid further questions. That was the power of his imagination, and his prejudice against anything he did not understand or know. True, everyone feared Arthur, but not because he was reclusive but more because he was said to be physically intimidating. He was rarely seen, though sometimes through an open blind. Jeremy had never set sights on Arthur, so he had come to a conclusion out of his wild imagination that Arthur was a horrifying creature, and so he had given Jeremy a blood-curding description of Arthur. Though there were several myths about Arthur such as that he was a zombie and so on, no one had actually proven anything.

            Soon, sure enough, Jeremy yearned to find out what Arthur was like. Day after day, plan after plan failed. Finally, exasperated, he gave up. Ironically, one day, it was not as we planned to make Arthur come out, but he came out of his own accord. As we were walking back home after school, it started raining cats and dogs. We ran home as fast as we can, and as we passed Arthur’s house, we saw a figure come walking towards the road. As he came closer, it became more and more apparent it was Arthur, and he was clutching something in his right hand. All things forgotten- the description of Arthur before, the myths, the fear- everything was forgotten, and Jeremy stood facing Arthur, still as a statue. Arthur handed the object to Jeremy, apparently a small umbrella.  Jeremy attempted to thank Arthur, but most of his words were lost to the wind.

            Jeremy gained some knowledge from the lesson. He realised his prejudice had been nothing more than a personal grudge that he had never seen Arthur, and that the prejudice was wrong.