Why Is Stereotyping Bad?

        Think back to elementary school when the teacher would ask "Can I have a strong boy help me move these textbooks to the shelf?" or something along that line. Half the boys in the class would jump up, puff out their chest, and saunter over to help, meanwhile the girls sat in their desks wondering why the job only called for a "strong boy". I know personally, I would get angry. I helped out around my house where my parents encouraged me to be strong and do things on my own, but when I came to school, a place that was supposed to teach me and mold me into a strong adult, I was discouraged and sectioned off by this stereotype that boys are strong and girls are not. Eventually, whenever I would have the opportunity to exhibit my capability and strength, I was hyper aware that I needed to complete the task perfectly so as not to reinforce the stereotype that only boys are strong. 

        While this may seem like a small matter, it is only one example of how seemingly harmless actions propelled by stereotypes can harm those that the stereotype focuses on. My reaction to this stereotype is called a "stereotype threat". This occurs when a person that is at the focus of a stereotype attempts to succeed at a task related to the stereotype; the simple knowledge of the stereotype can more often than not negatively affect their performance, and therefore reinforcing the stereotype. This can cause victims of stereotyping to feel like there is no escape. They will be trapped by this stereotype for their entire life, and they unfortunately begin believing it themselves. 

    "We all use stereotypes all the time, without knowing it. We have met the enemy of equality and the enemy is us." Stereotypes exist and thrive in our everyday actions, yet we rarely ever recognize them or take the time to evaluate the damage they are causing. Because people of all ages, races, genders, religions are caught by this stereotype threat, we must talk about stereotypes and actively work towards shattering them. 

Check back for the next article: HOW TO DEAL WITH STEREOTYPES.