Cultural ignorance leads to insensitivity
Photo Credit: Matthew Morefield
Parishioner Denise Oglive prays in front of the altar at St. Michael the Archangel. The Catholic church was adorned with flowers for Easter festivities.
April 27, 2010 • Emily Grantham, Reporter
Filed under In-Depth, Top Stories
On Feb. 24, several students arrived late to school. All of them had something in common: the gray smudges on their foreheads. They signed in at the office, using “church” as an explanation. They received numerous strange looks while walking to class. Some were asked, “Hey, what’s wrong with your face?” Others were told, “You look like Harry Potter.”
Perhaps without knowing it, the students who made those comments were insulting another’s religious practices. These remarks — not only directed toward Catholics on Ash Wednesday, but also to other Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, and followers of almost any religion — can be hurtful.
“Sometimes a person spouts off negative things about another’s religion,” counselor Kristi Dixon said. “Some people are comfortable confronting this type of situation, but for others, it steals their voice, and they just want it to go away.”
The gray smudges were actually ashes rubbed on Catholic students’ foreheads in the shape of a cross. They are symbolic of the belief that when one dies, he will rise again, like Jesus is said to in the Bible. Ash Wednesday is a holiday celebrated every year, but many non-Catholic students do not attempt to learn or understand what it means; instead, they make fun of those who participate.
Similar stories can be heard periodically of students being mocked for their beliefs. While not always made intentionally, these comments can be taken as a deliberate attack.
Sophomore Leena Younes is a Muslim. She knows many people who have experienced religious intolerance.
“One of my friends has been made fun of before at school,” Younes said. “People have said that she smells like curry all the time, or because she’s a Pakistani Muslim, they make references to Osama Bin Ladin, who we don’t even associate ourselves with.”
These comments are insensitive, uninformed responses to a religion that another student practices.
“My friends, of course, defend themselves,” Younes said, “but it really hurts. You defend yourself, but you feel bad at the same time.”
There are many reasons a person can seem intolerant of another’s religion; however, this does not make their actions excusable.
“I would like to believe it is a lack of information,” Dixon said. “Maybe they just don’t know much about other religions. Many people fail to see the commonalities between all of the religions and instead focus on the negatives. They get their information from family or TV, which tend to be negative things about other religions.”
One student has found a way to bring together his friends and celebrate his culture as well as educate others about it. Junior Adam Sitzmann started the Jewish Student Union (JSU) at BV West. JSU is a nationally recognized school club that meets monthly to educate both Jewish and non-Jewish students about their culture.
“I started this club because I noticed that there were many students with a Jewish heritage they didn’t know much about,” Sitzmann said. “I wanted to give them the opportunity to learn about a part of their family lineage.”
Although Sitzmann is trying to stop religious intolerance by educating others, he has also experienced it before.
“Most of [the religious intolerance] is because people do not understand or don’t know their facts,” Sitzmann said. “When these instances happen, it can be easily dealt with. However, when someone says a derogatory comment or hurtful joke it is harder to face.”
Not only do students have trouble understanding others’ cultures, but some teachers do as well. Many fail to pay enough attention to religious holidays to know when they are.
“Some teachers will act like it’s a huge inconvenience to them to adjust their plan accordingly,” Sitzmann said. “It is really an inconvenience for me to have to miss school for the holiday.”
These students have had to face uncomfortable situations at school because of their religious affiliations. Many of these situations can be avoided if students find ways to raise their level of tolerance.
“Reporting these instances would really help, even though people don’t tend to do that,” Dixon said. “Many students also are not comfortable with speaking up when they see instances of religious intolerance. The bystanders need to speak up because it can be a powerful force, instead of just letting someone get their feelings hurt.”
People have to understand that they cannot control what another believes; they just have to respect and accept it.
“The biggest problem is that in the area we live in, people tend to be ignorant of different cultures,” Sitzmann said. “This is what causes discrimination.”
Last 5 posts in In-Depth
- A New Perspective: BV Southwest offers a fresh start - May 7th, 2010
- From Ignorance to Awareness: Teens explore diversity - April 27th, 2010
- What's at Stake: Consider safety while traveling abroad - March 10th, 2010
- A New Take on Spring Break - March 10th, 2010
- In-Depth: Abuse more prevalent than many believe - February 19th, 2010
Video: JETV May Newscast
Loading ...
Comments
Feel free to leave a comment...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!