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Is racism taught or learned?

Are children born to hate or to love? Children, like paper are blank canvases waiting to be drawn upon with ideas, thoughts and perception. Those ideas, thoughts and perceptions come from parents. Parents are the ones who choose whether they intend to nuture their child's upbringing, or to molest it.

If you're watching the History Channel "Secrets of the Ku Klux Klan", one of the clips show a mom holding her child. The image is innocent enough. However, both mom and child are dressed in the white sheets of the Alabama Klan. They smile for the camera and look all loving. Under those smiles, a mom is abusing her child. She is, with the help of her family, neighbors and friends, teaching her future heir to judge someone's skin color over their character. She is teaching her future heir to not accept African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanic Americans and Asian Americans as "Americans". She is teaching her future heir to reject multiculturalism and our nation's "melting pot" society. She is teaching hate and building the foundation for her child's difficult, and possibly short life ahead.

A baby born doesn't know that black people are surly and ill-mannered. They don't know that Hispanics "beg" to work the slimiest jobs. They're ignorant to taxi drivers and gas station attendants are always Hindus or Sikhs. They don't know Asians clean and press bedsheets better than anyone.

A baby born doesn't know that black people are prone to anger, crime and violence. They don't know that all Hispanics come from Mexico. They also don't all Arabs are really terrorists waiting to strike at America. They also don't know that Asians try to dress and act "white".

Europeans emphasized "racial boundaries" as a fabric of our nation. Stereotypes like the ones mentioned are taught to children at a very young age. When someone utters an ethnic slur such as gook, chink (Asians), wop (Italians), wetback (Hispanics), tarbaby, jigaboo, monkey (blacks) or cracker and honky (white), the derogative words and their meanings are taught from parent or guardian to child. Some adults are very deliberate in teaching their children to hate. Klu Klux Klan, Skinheads and the Christian Identity use science, religion and the Constitution in supporting their racist beliefs.

Teachings of racism are bestowed from generation to generation. Good values get passed down. The same goes for bad traits. To teach hate to children is committing child abuse. When that disadvantaged child encounters the real world, their prejudiced upbringing can spell doom. Fellow students and adults can be cruel. They can be extra cruel to growing racist.

Racism should fade if determined people stop it. The teachers of hate should be ostracized from our multicultural world. Our damned media does their part to fan the flames of racial discord. A black or a woman as president would benefit America's push to equality and unity. As Election Day approaches, consider the future when marking your ballots. Racism should go out like the horse and buggy; as a thing of the past.

Learn more about this author, Marcus Brooks.
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