Prejudice Defined

Prejudice Defined

Each citizen within the American society has his own definition of the word

prejudice. A person's translation of the word dictates his response to other people's

prejudices. One interpretation of it could be a feeling of partiality resulting from a

prejudgment that influences a person's thoughts, mindset, and behavior.

Today's society usually associates negative connotations with the word prejudice.

This is why the average American cringes or switches to self-defense mode when he

hears the word uttered. However, prejudices do not have to be negative. For example, a

prejudice, or prejudgment, can be made on a particular activity or location to determine

whether or not a person places himself/herself there. A person's prejudice could help to

keep them out of a harmful or even dangerous situation. The fact that a person has

preconceived ideas, or prejudices, toward a particular setting or environment does not

make the ideas negative. Therefore, those with a positive view need to reclaim the word

from those with negative mindsets.

Unfortunately, the most common association of the word prejudice is the feelings of

hatred between whites and blacks. Prejudices have driven individual people groups to

look down upon and mistreat other people groups because they are different. This

interpretation of the word is wrong. Not only are individuals hurt, but society as a whole

experiences a wave of disunity and ill feelings among the citizens. This demonstrates

how prejudices can impact people's behavior and interaction with one another. Clearly,

prejudices, or biases, need to become associated with positive, or harmless, feelings and

emotions. Society needs to see that the word prejudice in and of itself is not negative; it is