Discriminating Humanity
Discrimination is the worst crime against humanity. Every second, hundreds of people are victims of discrimination. Despite that discrimination can be the reason for extremely severe problems, society doesn't know how much it truly affects us. It is a crime against humanity because racism is against human rights. Sexism can be found in every second of our lives. Judging people by their religion is why there is no peace in the entire world.
One of the biggest problems in the world is racism. We witness it everywhere, even in the most reputable organizations. The New York Times stated, "Harvard consistently rated Asian-American applicants lower than others on traits like positive personality, likability, courage, kindness and being widely respected, according to an analysis of more than 160,000 student records filed Friday by a group representing Asian-American students in a lawsuit against the university." Although they scored higher than any other applicants of other races, their chances of getting selected got dragged down because of their low ratings of personality traits. This shows us that, unfortunately, even in one of the world's top universities, the right to an equal education is neglected. Furthermore, based on an article on Psychology Today, "One review of 121 studies in 2013 found that youth between the ages of 12 and 18 who experienced discrimination were significantly more likely to experience mental health problems such as depression and anxiety compared to those who did not experience discrimination” “We can understand that teens that experience racial bias may suffer from many mental or health issues. To conclude, racism leads to the unjust treatment of people around the world. If societies don't take action, these types of events will increase drastically.
Sexism is another shortcoming to the modern era. We all witnessed some teachers saying, "Can I have two strong boys to help me move this heavy box?" Biologically males can have more muscles due to male hormones, but this is not always true in practice, so it would be incorrect to stereotype males as the stronger gender. Due to many reports, some females are much muscular than many males. For this reason, one should not say such types of phrases. Another case is about a pencil company called "BIC" that created a new pencil named "BIC For Her." On October 12, 2012, famous talk show celebrity Ellen posted a video that responded to these pencils. She said, "They are pens just for ladies; where have our pens been? Can you believe this? We have been using men pens for all these years! They both come in both "lady" colors pink and purple. They are just like regular pens except they are pink, so they cost twice as much. I looked at the back of the package, and it said it was designed to 'fit a woman's hand.'" Such commercials or products like this can increase inequality. As a result, sexism stereotypes two genders. Females can't do that, and males can do that.
Last but not least, religious discrimination can hurt a lot of people, both physically or emotionally. In the article "Religious Prejudice." Prejudice in the Modern World Reference Library, Encyclopedia.com, November 15, 2018, "Different religions have different beliefs, practices. In many regions of the world, religion is the defining characteristic of people. People tend to elevate their only true belief system or faith. This absolute conviction of superiority over all other religions can be dangerous. Severe conflict resulting in violence can occur. World history is full of holy wars that were fought in the name of one's religion and God, all of which resulted in horrific death and severe religious prejudice in the twentieth century occurred in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. Six million European Jews were murdered by Germany's Nazi army simply because they were Jews. This involves not only religious prejudice but also racial prejudice as well." Furthermore, many people believe that all Muslims are dangerous and terrorists. People continually stereotype Muslims and mention that all Muslims are terrorists, which is not valid. No one knows that humanity as a whole is a terrorist. This can increase prejudice among people, and they can be hurt just because they are members of that religion.
To sum up, discrimination can cause people to feel insecure about themselves when facing racism and sexism or prejudice against their religion. How would you feel if you were in their shoes? How would you feel if you were marginalized or secluded for something that you can’t even control?
Yonca Erel
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