Stereotypes cultivate ignorance

By Charlotta Kratz

I'll be honest: I think it is unbelievably disrespectful to dress as janitors and pregnant teenagers to represent Mexicans. But it's not hard to see where those images come from -- just watch half an hour of Comedy Central.

But there's a difference between using stereotypes for comedic cultural commentary and using them in real life: People are affected in ways a TV audience is not.

Stereotypes hurt because they are simplistic and negative. My people, the Swedes, are depicted as quiet and boring or blonde and sex-crazed. I have no interest in getting to know anyone who jokes about Swedes.

And that is the real danger: Disrespect breeds indifference. And indifference makes for voluntary segregation. People can get along with those different from them, but not if additional distance is created by disrespectful jokes.

I have taught ethnic studies courses in the communication department for seven years. One memorable class started out divided and hostile. Those on the right side of the room were white, and those on the left side of the room were brown. There was a lot of glaring and very little listening.

This class was diverse in every sense. It was 50 percent non-white and included members from seven athletic teams and leaders from the Multicultural Center and GALA.

One intense discussion concerned the word "exotic." To a white woman, that word is a compliment. To a woman of color, it is not. To her, "exotic" stresses that she is different. So should the Latina get over it because the intent wasn't to disrespect her?

It comes down to the same issue that's been raised by the theme party. In my classes, I teach that intent is beside the point. Just because you intend something as a harmless joke doesn't make it so. Once the word or action is out there, its meaning will be created by whoever hears it. Their interpretation is as real to them as your intent was to you. To accept diversity is to accept that there is more than one truth.

History and experience shape our interpretations. Words and actions mean different things to different people. In this world, we have to take that into account.

At the end of the quarter, a young man in the class I mentioned was attacked because he was gay. His classmates rallied fiercely around him. Not everybody accepted homosexuality, but all had learned enough about his life to be emotionally affected by what happened -- they understood the bigger picture of oppression.

It's not a question of whether people can do it. It's whether they want to. Disrespectful jokes push people away. Respectful listening draws them in. It's as easy as that.

Charlotta Kratz is a lecturer in the communication department.