Nature vs. Nurture
Most people would agree that racism is bad, but many of us don't know why. Many say that it is bad just because. Well, that's not exactly a persuasive answer. I agree that racism is bad but WHY it's bad, I don't know.
My social studies classes, freshman and sophemore year of high school, were taught by a very passionate, caring, and enthusiastic teacher. He was great. One of the things that he taught me, and I will never forget this, is the theory of Environmental Determinism.
Environmental Determinism is a theory that basically says that we are shaped based by our environment. We talked about why racism is bad and he tried to pry reasonable answers out of the class but all we could respond with was, "just because it's bad," or "I don't know, that's what I've been taught my entire life." We discussed that the reason why racism is bad is because not all races were given the same resources to start out with. Africa has basically two seasons, the rainy season and the dry season. North America's seasons chang based on the state. South America changes based on the country. European countries generally have similar climates, and I think, were given the best resources to start with. And it goes on and on and on.
Well, if you look even further into it. From the different seasons we get things such as, immunity to diseases (like colds etc), crops, and different things such as trees and animals (which give us immunity also by exposing us to their diseases). Also, with four seasons it is necessary to adapt to the different weather. With this comes certain inventions such as the window that is opened when it is too hot or closed when it is too cold. These are small adaptations to the changing weather.
Europe is geographically placed in the most forgiving place. Europeans were able to travel easier by foot because the land is less mountainous. Also, weather patterns running east to west are the same. They changes once you go North to South. Continents like Africa and South America must move north to south where the climates change so it is harder to share ideas with others. Also, South America is very mountainous making it even more difficult to travel North.
Ok so my point. Europe got it the best. With all the resources they got, they are just naturally more innovative. For example, with the many types of trees that are native there, they were able to build BOATS. With these boats they were able to explore and conquer places such as countries in Africa and the Americas.
So could this be the reason why racism is wrong? The reason that we were not all given a fair chance at the start. That it's not our fault if our race was not the first one to conquer the others.
This is the only reasonable explaination I have to figuring out why people are racist in the first place and why it is wrong. Because when it comes down to it. My skin color, my hair color, my eye color did not shape me into the person that I have become. The environment that I was brought up in has.
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I have never heard of environmental determinism, but what a theory. Great blog! Thanks for the info.
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Had we not loved ourselves at all, we could never have been obliged to love anything. So that self-love is the basis of all love.
- Thomas Traherne
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Good theory but that explains racism thousands of years ago and ethnic cleansing activites. Races hate other races nowadays because of multiple things. The funny thing is I could hate a white person for being lazy, but if I hate a black person for being lazy, well then that's racist(in the eyes of society and not environmental determinism), it is more or less social construct.
And environment determinism is the view that physcial environment rather than the social environment, determines cultures. It in actuallity have nothing to do with racism, racism is based on race. Hating someone based on their geographical background is i don't know what, but it wouldnt be racism. The idea the evironmental determinism has anything to do with racism is a theory that was used long ago to show that racism was ok, but that theory was thrown out the window because it is stereotyping a race of people. Environmental determinisim is based mostly on stereotypes, like that lazy, promiscuous people live in warmer climates, that is a stereotype. Stereotypes all have some truth to them. But rascism is now seen as a social construct and not so much an environmental determinism construct.
It is a good theory and helps explain some things. I thought this was going to be the theory (forgot what it's called of course) where certain people think they're superior simply because of what area their ancestors came from.
That is basically the theory.