In the shoes of others

Helping or accepting?

- A: I feel like sometimes when you choose to support a certain group, just by doing that you're discriminating another group as well.

- Really? I'm not sure?

- A: I'll give you an example. I'm involved in a local community group, and we need support from everyone. One of my friends wants to specifically target the immigrant community, but I feel by targeting the immigrant community we're then stopping the very local community, they feel discriminated against and I think it's better to do stuff where it involves everyone rather than one specific group. So that's what I mean. It really depends, but sometimes if you choose to focus on one group, you're actually discriminating another group because they feel rejected or that they don't belong in that project, so.... I think a lot of society runs on box ticking, so you have to fit into a box and then people are split into groups because what if you're gay, an asylum seeker and have some sort of disability, you know...

- Well, often, issues are combined, and it's tricky because if you don't know a lot about the issues an asylum seeker can face and know more about LGBT issues, then you will be more helpful with one issue than the other...

- A: Do you think you should be helping or accepting? I'm just thinking of a friend who once said that he was working with young people that were supposedly vulnerable. And these young people hated that label of "vulnerable" because, you know, they didn't see themselves as such, and in many ways they were very resilient. Probably more resilient than a lot of us, but they're classified as vulnerable. And so maybe it's more acceptance? I don't know...

- More acceptance would be an amazing thing, yes!

- B: And if you don't understand somebody, ask them! If I don't know the way to talk to somebody who comes from a different background from me, I'll talk to them and ask them questions.

- Yes, it's really important, asking questions to those who are concerned!

- B: Yes. I teach at the art college and there are students where some of the staff are like « Do I call them him or her? » and I say « Just ask them! ». You tell me, because you're there, you know, and I'll do my best to accept and go with that.

- A: And if you feel awkward asking, I had an English teacher who was saying « Excuse my ignorance », and I think that's a really humble way to ask a question.

- B: And and we all are ignorant. And the older you get, the more ignorent you realize you are, there's so many things that you don't know.

#discrimination #discriminating #group #community #localcommunity #immigrantcommunity #asylumseeker #asylum #seeker #acceptance #lgbtissues #resilient #vulnerable #boxticking #humble #ignorant #ignorance #project

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These are the contributions to a social project to promote empathy and fight discrimination.

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