Acceptance (standard:other, 1004 words)
Author: Jim Spence	Added: Apr 19 2002	Views/Reads: 3416/2236	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
in the end, we're all the same ...

We love with all of our hearts, we're deathly afraid, we become green
with envy, we get in a jealous rage ... all human emotions, and all so 
strong that they can take control of our lives.  We can lose all sense 
of who we are due to our emotions, making decisions and comments we 
otherwise wouldn't make.  But then, in times of more rational thought, 
we win back control, and sometimes regret our choices due to these 
emotions.  Strange, though, that the one human emotion we can control, 
and most often don't, is hate. 

We can't really control who we are.  Oh, we can take ‘anger management'
classes and make an effort to become more even keeled, but, in the end, 
the way we were raised, and what's in our hearts, make us the type of 
people we are. 

We grow up believing that the world is a certain way.  We take the
teachings of our parents and become small mirrors of them as we mature. 
 We're affected by outside influences, of course, but our parents set 
us on the course of our emotions and beliefs, and we carry on their 
lessons.  We are little balls of clay. 

If your father hunts, you'll probably hunt, too.  If your mother sews or
bakes, odds are that you will too.  And, if your parents are bigots ... 
there's a good chance you'll be a bigot. 

Bias, prejudice and bigotry are three different levels of the same
thing, though bigotry is a failing all its own.  To be biased means you 
lean one way or the other in any condition, without the benefit of 
reasoning.  Prejudice means you have a preconceived idea about 
something.  Bigotry is the strongest of the three.  A bigot blindly 
believes that certain people are somehow inferior to them due to their 
race, creed, religion, skin color, or a dozen other differences humans 
have. 

Imagine that ... that someone could actually believe a person is
inferior to them because they worship a different god, or celebrate a 
different holiday, or just happened to have a skin tone different from 
their own; that, somehow, a person is less of a human because of these 
differences. 

We all know bigots.  We work with them, our children go to school with
their children, or they live next door.  They make no bones about their 
bigotry.  When the target of their hate becomes a topic, they make 
clear their feelings about “them”.  And, make no mistake about it, 
bigotry is rooted in hate – hate and fear of the unknown. 

For, if a white man hates a black man, he makes no effort to really get
to know that man ... his fear and hatred keep him from making any 
effort.  After all, it's so much easier to hate what you don't know 
than it is to take the time to understand and accept.  And, if he 
doesn't know the truth, his bigotry will be the overriding factor in 
how he deals with that which he doesn't understand. 

Every single human is biased and prejudiced.  These are human failings
that we all have.  The sooner we admit this to ourselves, the faster we 
can take steps to learn, and accept, and diminish this failing.  You 
are prejudiced about some things; so am I. 

Very few people in white society will walk up a dark city street, see a
group of young black men milling about, and not feel somewhat 
uncomfortable.  Part of this feeling comes from society, because 
everyday we see stories in the news about black on white crime.  Part 
of this comes from the teachings we received as a child.  Our parents 
wanted us to be safe, and they told us to take care when we walked the 
streets at night.  But, truth be known, some people in black society 
have these same fears when they see this same group of black youths.  
It's ingrained in us all.  And it's a prejudice. 

Knowing that I'm prejudiced, how can I chastise another person for being
a bigot?  How can I think that any other particular person is wrong for 
believing as they do?  I have my own beliefs.  In truth, I wish not to 
pass judgment on another for their beliefs, as much as I feel pity for 
them for those beliefs, as someone will probably feel pity on me for 
mine. 

To hate a black man because he's black is wrong.  To hate a Muslim


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