So THAT'S What They're Like!
Note: This week’s article was supposed to be a continuation of last week’s article on anger. I will continue with that topic next week. This week, however, I wanted to address the tragic attack of September 11, and its aftermath.
In 1991, after Jeffrey Dahmer was arrested for the torture and murder of several young men and boys, many of my gay male friends reported being verbally harassed—or bashed outright—by allegedly heterosexual men who thought they were making the world a safer place by ridding it of “child molesting faggots.” Small problem. My friends were not child molesters.
In 1993, when the World Trade Center was bombed, a friend of mine was married to an Iranian man. The day after the bombing, Shahin was walking down the sidewalk in the Midwestern city where they lived when he was approached by three thugs. They called him names, punched him, kicked him, and spat on him. Before they ran off, one of the ringleaders told him, “Die, terrorist scum.” Shahin, of course, was no more a terrorist than I am.
How are these two incidents similar? In both cases, all members of a minority group were assumed to be responsible for the criminal actions of a few individuals.
I am seeing this pattern re-emerge in the wake of Tuesday’s tragic attacks. Arabs and Muslims all over the country have been the targets of hatred and violence by those seeking revenge. Significantly, when Timothy McVeigh bombed the Murrah Federal Office Building in Oklahoma City, there was no similar outcry against whites or heterosexuals. McVeigh was seen as a deviant individual, not as a representative of his race or sexual orientation.
Our very language teaches us to see minorities in more culpable terms. How many times in the last few days have you heard the words, “Arab terrorists?” How many times after Dahmer’s arrest did you hear words like, “homosexual rape” or “gay killer?” Now think about how many times you’ve heard a newscaster say, “The nation was stunned today when white terrorists…” or “heterosexual serial killer Ted Bundy…” Don’t worry if you’ve never heard those phrases. I haven’t either.
Why Do We Stereotype?
According to Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary a stereotype is a “standardized mental picture.”
That’s not altogether a bad thing. Stereotyping allows us to take mental shortcuts so that we do not have to evaluate each experience in our lives as if it were brand new. For instance, we all have stereotypes about what a “chair” looks like, or what content a movie billed as a “romantic comedy” will contain.
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