If you're blaming me for someone else being a racist because I look like that racist...
You're a racist too.
Wasn't me, didn't do it.
Blaming the group for individual crimes is the core of bigotry.
It's a seductive trap and easy to fall into.
Interestingly, noticing that groups of people have something in common is not racist or sexist if the observation happens to be true.
You wouldn't be able to recognize them as a group otherwise.
And sometimes the differences between groups are insurmountable and they should live with some space between them. But not as often as many bigots would have you believe.
If the group ferociously defends its individual bad members, blaming the group makes some sense.
ReplyDeleteWe also need to stop conflating prejudice with bigotry. Repeated bad experiences with a group will lead to reasoned prejudice. Bigotry is unreasoned or irrational.
DeleteThat sounds like most police departments who will vigorously defend their bad apples without acknowledging that spoils the barrel. Does that make me bigoted towards police departments
DeleteReasoned prejudice based on observing actual behavior rather than unreasoned prejudice because "they're all like that" based on supposition and slander.
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