Carly Hamilton Blog Post 3

1. Everyone stereotypes, whether you intend to or not we just can't help it. Most, if not all, ethnic groups have their own stereotype that seems to define them whether accurate or not. One ethnic group you might not think of first when you think of stereotyped ethnicities is the Irish. Irish people are often thought of as loud and sloppy drinkers who are constantly drunk and hanging around in bars watching sports and starting fights. Often times I've seen them portrayed as this in movies. They are portrayed as quick-tempered, angry brawlers constantly looking for a fight and are often made fun of for being stupid. When you picture what they look like you probably imagine them to have red hair, pale skin, and dressed in green. Obviously this is not at all accurate of who the Irish really are. There are plenty of things we can do to help reduce the stereotyped image of each ethnic group. Teachers can show their students different aspects of that ethnicity as opposed to what they are generally portrayed as and educate them on the history of the ethnicities. They can also take students on field trips where they can interact with students of other ethnicities so they kids can see that they are not so different from each other. Parents can monitor their kids from seeing certain movies or television shows that are stereotypical to ethnicities and take them on family vacations to areas they are not familiar with so they can see how other ethnicities really are for themselves. Society as a whole can stop being so judgmental and learn to accept and live among one another. Also, the media could stop producing such stereotypical movies and shows that give people false portrayals of other ethnic groups.

2. One label I've had put on me before is "quiet" or "shy." This label has always made me pretty angry/annoyed because I would only hear it from people who didn't know me at all. I don't consider myself to be a quiet or shy person at all. It simply takes me a while sometimes to warm up to people and become comfortable around them. People who know me really well think I'm the complete opposite. They consider me the outgoing class clown, which is completely opposite. Every time I'm told I'm quiet I get so mad and become even more quiet because I don't like to talk much when I'm mad so it just makes it worse. I heard this more often when I was younger, so maybe hearing it so much then made me change and try and be more outgoing when I first meet people now. But I know I'll always be the person who would rather listen to what people have to say rather than talk non stop about myself and what I think.