Ignorance

I feel very fortunate that if my parents did have negative opinions about people based on stereotypes, they never spoke about them in front of me. I realize this is a free country and freedom of speech is protected, but I wonder if the same people who post negative comments about others on the Internet would be so bold to do it in front of real people without the Internet protecting their anonymity. I also realize some of these opinions may be based on negative experiences, but experiences cannot be generalized to human-kind, the probability of the truth in this fallacy is near 1 in 6 billion. I usually don't spend energy responding to any specific posts online because ignorance is usually fueled by hate and being afraid to place yourself in someone else's position (e.g. empathy). I am also not originally from Indiana, and I don't want to end up stereotyping based on the comments of those that are so angry they spend more time than usual voicing their negative opinions of people. The human condition is the same for everyone, we all have struggles. And if you do have a question about why someone would do something, there is a way to ask that will be educational, and at the same time not condescending.

What ignorance proves to me is that parents are not monitoring what their children say or learn from other influences. I realize I am not the only influence in my sons' lives, so I carefully pay attention to the opinions they may form based on those of their friends and their parents. A few months ago my nine-year old came home from a friends house and said, "Women don't play football." This was what he was told by someone I consider a friend of the family. Maybe I should take out my football picture from so many years ago when I played guard. I don't want my kids to succumb to gender roles, especially when I don't agree with them. Relationships and roles should be based on strengths and what each partner brings into a relationship, not what is expected from them because of stereotypes. I try to teach my son's not to judge people, and at the same time I have to explain to them why they might be judged by kids they think are their friends. I explain to them that how they are taught by their parents to judge and stereotype others really can't be changed, and I hope when they are older I can teach them to speak up without them having fear of retaliation.

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