Race Changers assignment 1 reminder

by Jen Chau and Carmen Van Kerckhove

There are just few days to go before we put up a new assignment at Race Changers so if you haven’t already, we’d encourage you to join us in doing Assignment 1- Stereotypes and Racial Profiling:

Stereotypes plague our interactions and racial profiling preys on certain members of society in the name of “safety.” Of course, these are things that we need to continue to challenge. Question the stereotypes that you, your friends, and your family hold (everyone is guilty of subscribing to some — it’s almost unavoidable given the amount of stereotypes that we are all bombarded with starting from a very young age!). Ask why we are subjecting a certain few to racial profiling. Do the perceived benefits outweigh the very real inconveniences and attacks on our civil rights? Generalizations are mainly detrimental, and in no way move us in a positive direction.

Read this article on racial profiling by Malcolm Gladwell. He talks about the importance of knowing how and when to make generalizations. Have something to say about it? Leave a comment.

If you haven’t already checked out Race Changers, what are you waiting for? It’s a blog that brings together a community of people working towards an anti-racist future, one week at a time. People often ask, “What can I do as an individual to make a difference?” Race Changers offers a way for any person to join the fight against racism. Each week we post a new assignment that we will all do together, and we discuss what we learned from the experience.

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Do you have an idea for an assignment we could all do together? Please email it to us at team@racechangers.com!