Do you think our prejudices determine that we believe that a person’s race, religion or sex determines their actions? Do you think this is the basis of our every decision?

Are we so blinded by our prejudices that we will believe anything? Every time i hear we need more people of this race or that sex or this religious affiliation or that income bracket, in this or that field in order to promote those issues, i feel like we are being fooled into a particular way of thinking, which is manipulative.

Why do we feel that a white person will work mostly for the benefit of white people only or that a black person will similarly work only for the benefit of his or her own race of people? What about believing that only a woman can improve conditions for other women?

This in my opinion is a completely incorrect assumption. We have had people of every background and not only is there no proof that they worked for the benefit of their race or class or religious sect or sex they belonged to. Yet we keep hearing the same arguments over and over again. Only a woman can work for the rights of other women, only a black person can work to improve conditions for the black community, only a muslim or hindu or christian or jewish person can help those communities gain strides forward in the world. I do not follow this way of thinking at all.

I know men who don’t just believe in women’s rights and equality but live in a way that proves this belief daily. I know women who in positions of power do nothing to help and uplift other women, and I know yet other women who don’t just talk about women’s empowerment but believe in human empowerment and in helping all people achieve their goals.

Prejudices and biases are within someone’s heart. We all have certain prejudices and biases, but we have to address them within ourselves and question why we believe what we do and why? Working through our own issues, will bring healing to us and our wider circle.

What if we took a look at the opposite side of the picture. Do we want people in positions of power or authority who will only work for the category they fall under? So would it be okay for someone to only work for the black community or the white or the jewish or the hindu or the muslim, or their sexual preference group and so on and on and on? What about those who would only work for men or just women? Is this the world we want to live in?

What matters is what you believe within yourself. Know thyself.