“We will be reborn, in short, when we learn to pass over hate, to forge our future together as one world - a small world - under the transcendent mysteries of heaven” ( Farmer ). In today’s society, everyone in the world has a tendency to expel their negative judgements towards other cultures. Whether they are black, white, hispanic, or islamic, one group of people will never be happy with the other all because they share different beliefs. Each individual person in this world is entitled to their own opinion; and no one should have a say in it otherwise. But, unfortunately that is far from the case in today’s society. Muslim men crashed a plane through two of America’s most significant buildings, all because of different cultural beliefs. Adolf Hitler tortured and killed jewish people because of the exact same reason. Everyone is born and raised differently, same culture or not; no one is exactly the same. Each person in the world carries a little piece of each other within themselves, and in the end people are just people. They think the same way , feel the same way, cry the same way, etc. But, that’s what some people tend to forget. By putting aside each other’s differences and not focusing so much on how other people feel, the world could be a joyful place, and fear would be nonexistent.
In the late 1930’s problems greatly arose between cultures. At this time, the two concentration camps, Auschwitz and Buchenwald, now existed; as well as the Nazi’s. These camps were also referred to as, “extermination camps” . Jews and non-jews were sent to these camps, imprisoned, and tortured all for the sad fact that they were not German. Everyone was separated according to gender,so, most families never even got the chance to say goodbye to their loved ones; many didn’t even know that it would be their last goodbye. Why did it matter so much to this demonic dictator, Adolf Hitler, if these innocent people, were Jewish? What harm did being jewish do to him? I know you’re probably wondering what the Holocaust has to do with right now, but, sadly enough, in multiple parts of our world, and country, not much has changed since this tragic time. There are parts of the country, where a person can walk into a community of a different race and immediately get shot at because of their ethnicity; it’s a harsh and scary world, and a lot of people don’t even know the half of it, including myself.
Every culture is beautifully unique, for many different reasons but, the problem with different cultures today is that everyone makes constant generalizations, and assumptions. No one ever looks into people’s cultures; everyone consistently goes by people’s beliefs. “Generalizations are often dangerous, and especially when accompanied by recommendations such as: move closer when talking to Hispanics, make more physical contact, don't expect participation, and so on.” Cultures are all beautiful in their own, individual ways. Each one of them has a specific significance, and importance behind them. In society, nobody takes the time to appreciate how intriguing each culture is because their beauty is blocked out by the generalizations made by the people and even worse, the media.
“Culture shock - a condition of disorientation affecting someone who is suddenly exposed to an unfamiliar culture or way of life or set of attitudes” (Websters Dictionary.org). Culture shock can affect every single person differently. Some can portray a positive reaction, and others, the complete opposite. The biggest problem with the negative side of culture shock is the judgement zone. When someone has a negative reaction to a new culture, this is when negative, unnecessary assumptions are made, sometimes without even meaning to be. “
Culture is part of the fabric of every society, including our own. It shapes “the way things are done” and our understanding of why this should be so” (OECD) . Each culture has it’s own definition of norms. But, people outside of that specific culture have no room to judge “what is right and what is wrong”. “It is of course important to be culturally sensitive. But respect for other cultures is not merely uncritical acceptance when culture, tradition or religion are invoked. We would not accept culture or tradition as a rationale for discrimination against an ethnic group – rather we would look for opportunities to counteract prejudice and its consequences.
It’s so frightening how much one’s race can effect a simple relationship between two people. Everybody is always saying that they would like this world to be equal, but the truth is, WE are the ones that have the ability to control it. If we all put our opinions aside and look at one another for our worth and ability to accomplish, the world would simply be a better place. Yes, I know you’re thinking, “well, obviously…” but, the truth of the matter is, each and every one of us are different people. There is always going to be that person whom consistently judges somebody else based solely off of their appearance. We will forever be trapped in a world filled with inadequate humans whom share inconsistent views and beliefs. As true as it is that one person can make a difference, it takes 7 billion people to fully agree. One thing that I will never understand is how people can look at a person and immediately know exactly what it is about them. The color of someone’s skin does not rectify what you can expect out of them but our society is trained to do so whether we realize it or not, and it’s a bit frightening.
If everyone stopped worrying about other people, the world would be a lot happier of a place. Between the holocaust, 9/11, and all of the other racially unethical things that occur in this world today, a lesson needs to be learned by someone, somewhere. The simple rules behind equality need to be abided by and forced upon citizens around the globe. No one deserves to be judged by the way that they live, or loathed by someone for sharing different beliefs. Each person in the world carries a little piece of each other within themselves, and in the end, everyone is the same with a different exterior. Once the world releases the violence, and abolishes the hate, then the unity of nations can be rectified as one.
