Sans Prejudis

I must say that I enjoy reading every comment posted by The Mutt on my blog. For a 17-year old, he does have a lot on his mind. If not for the Algebra and Trigonometry that he talks about, I would wonder if he's lying about his age :)

Yesterday, he commented on my post on "A Disgusted White Girl vs Malay Girls," saying that he likes my closing remark on that post, which said, "As a citizen of a multi-racial country and a citizen of the world, I do not have racial prejudices in choosing my friends or candidate for a life partner. My discrimination is in choosing friends with positive attitudes and admirable characters. I also believe that Men, must also possess admirable virtues to get a Virtuous Woman. You must deserve her. Virtuous Men begets Virtuous Women."

He also said: "I knew there were more people in the real world (the world that is changing), people that have values, have gone through test and trial to achieve understanding as to what makes a partner truly valuable. I am sickened to be white because of not only the work of my ancestors but also at my distant American / Canadian cousins who constantly look at themselves in the social mirror. But on the other hand, I know a few americans / canadians that remind me that being racist against my own ethnic group and opening my arms to other ethnic groups is something related to hypocrisy, or at least double-standards."

What I find interesting in his point is the hypocrisy in opening one's arms to other ethnic groups, but in doing that one creates double standards to be seen as racially unprejudiced. Let me illustrate what I mean. Say, a white man, in overcoming his prejudice against coloured people, will be extra nice to them, and in doing so will be less nice to his own people. Something like what Affirmative Action has done. Thus, in creating double standards, he discriminate his own kind.

no prejudice 


I believe what should have been in the first place, is, to avoid creating double standards. Treat another person of a different race as you would your own race - treat everyone as equals. In being kind to other races, we cannot be less kind to our own. In being open to other cultures, we cannot be less proud of our own.

If at all you need or want to treat him or her differently, it is only because of the differences in the cultural expectations. Because, in trying to understand another's culture, you cannot think and feel in your own culture. More importantly, we cannot impose our culture on others - that would be colonialism. Especially so when you are in a foreign land, because you are the foreigner in another's country.