The Rotten Apple

by Wang Lei

My mom has always told me, "If you're ever going to get anywhere in life, you have to make good first impressions!". I'll spare you the details about the hell holes I'd live in and the dead-end jobs described by my mom if I did otherwise. Not a lot of people would think this is a big deal. I mean, making a good first impression is one of the first things parents should be telling their kids to do right? I, however, get the lecture a lot when I was a kid. Heck, my mom called me last night to give me my fix. I seem to be unable to make any sort of good impression with lots of people. This is especially true with teachers. You had no idea the pain I went through trying to look for a teacher who liked me to write my recommendation. I'm not complaining though. I make no effort in trying to leave a good first impression, nor do I ever care for the first impression someone leaves after meeting me.

What is a first impression anyway? It is probably the judgement a person makes on another based on the way he or she talks and acts in the first meeting. But in a lot of cases, first impressions are made based on the stereotypes, especially racial ones, that person fit in.

"Wow, you must be really smart.". For most people, this is usually meant as a compliment. And I would take that comment as a compliment, if I had, for example, shown whoever said it the proof to a complicated math problem. But when given the comment the first time I meet someone, it means something completely different to me. It means they forgot to say "because you're Chinese". "Oh, stop complaining! You're in a good stereotype!" is the general response I get when I talk about this with my friends or people in general. That’s about when we would get into a whole great debate about stereotyping.

It's amazing how many people underestimate the negative effects of stereotyping. When you relate someone to a stereotype, you are basically taking away their individuality. For example, it is due to stereotypes that there’s a prevalent feeling of black people being athletic and not academic, and Chinese people being the opposite. Let's say you're a Chinese kid in high school. Through no fault of your own, others' expectations of you in school are higher than those of your classmates. You are disappointing your teachers if you have a C because "you can do better". Now, let's say you're a black kid in high school. Through no fault of your own, others' expectations of you in school are lower. You are commended for a C, because no one expects you to perform any better. The Chinese kid is pushed for more and more, never reaching the impossible demands that keep piling up, and the black kid is expected to do less and less, becoming lost in apathy. When it comes time to apply for college, the Chinese kid is about to have a nervous break down from all the pressure put on him to get into Harvard or Yale, since to the world, anything less and the kid is branded a failure. The black kid, on the other hand, works just as hard, gets into Harvard and Yale. But because of the stereotype of black people, he may see his self-confidence drop, pondering if he really belonged in Harvard or Yale. Both kids become fuel to strengthen the stereotype, making the very wrong seem more right and undeniable. And this is the system we have today?

What can we make of the above scenario? We know its not an isolated event. Its not something we can ignore. Consider what is being done: Two young people’s expectations, aspirations, and maybe even their outlook on life have been determined not by them, but their racial stereotypes. For all we know, the Chinese may have aspired to become a great NBA player, and the black kid may one day have disproved Einstein’s theory of relativity. That’s not to say that these two cannot overcome these obstacles to becoming whatever it is they want to be. But the fact that these unfair obstacles are even presented to them in the first place is absurd. Who are you to determine who they should be? They shouldn’t be required to show who they aren’t. They are not on trial!

Affirmative Action, one of our nation’s most divisive issues, is, I believe, one of the most negatively influential policies our nation has adapted today. Proponents of Affirmative Action say that it is “positive steps to enhance the diversity of some group, often to remedy the cumulative effect of subtle as well as gross expressions of prejudice.” (online.org/glossary.html), while opponents of it claim that it is reverse racism. While both sides have valid arguments, I believe Affirmative Action is doing nothing but strengthening the stereotyping that goes on everywhere in the nation.

College admission is a great indicator of stereotyping by Affirmative Action. By giving leeway to certain minority groups, colleges now give extra “points” for an applicant for their ethnicity. This means that in the admission process, applicants are being rewarded or punished, not only by their academic qualifications, personality, extracurricular accomplishments or interests, but his or her racial identity as well. What does this have to do with stereotyping? By saying that Affirmative Action “remedies cumulative prejudices” experienced by certain minority groups, colleges are assuming that everyone in those minority groups have experienced the prejudices and mistreatment. This, obviously, is not true. But as you can see, Affirmative Action caused the stereotyping of certain minority groups, rather than certain individuals, of having been prejudiced against.

The problem we’re facing now is very clear – we are losing our identity. Every time a person identifies with a stereotype, he is losing a part of his self to the masses. He then tends to act or behave accordingly, based on what the stereotype demands of him. He asks himself, “What am I supposed to do?” as opposed to “What do I want to do?”. That “want”, I think, is the one answer of how to destroy the concept of stereotype. Still, I find it very ironic that, in a country found on the preservation of individuality and equality, there can be such problems associated with stereotyping and double standards. Perhaps, as a country, we are losing sight of the importance and mystique of the individual. Perhaps we are becoming too lazy and impersonal to understand each other for the human that we are, and not just some vague generalization. I am not a nerd, Americanized Chinese immigrant, Weezer-maniac, rebelling teen, overachiever, or crazed sports fan. I am Wang.