Stereotypes in the American Society, Research Paper Example

Stereotypes represent generally held public view about a given group of people, or individuals in the society. They are assumptions held by the public about a given social group. Stereotyping may be negative or positive. In the American society, there are a lot of stereotypes about the Native American population; however, the African American population as a group leads in relation to the number of social stereotypes. These stereotypes are of diverse nature and also have diverse origins. They affect societal knowledge on a group of people and also hinder understanding of an individual based on their character and other individual aspects.

Stereotypes of African American Population

They represent the wide held public opinion about the behavior of the African American population. Most of the stereotypes are associated with how the general way of life of the African Americans as represented in the popular culture. Notable among them is the presentation of an African American person, especially from the historical perspective, as primitive and simple minded individual. For a long time this has been seen as the sole reason behind the strengthening of anti-African American views especially in groups with strong racist intentions (Smith, 1990).

Among the extreme stereotypes in the popular culture about the African Americans is that they are always presented as dumb and lazy. They are also portrayed as jobless and live in extremely poor conditions a reason believed by many as the sole cause of their involvement in criminal activities. African Americans are widely stereotyped to be animalistic, brutal and violent. They are always presented to have criminal intentions in the popular culture.

Stereotypes of the black American population are also different according to the different on the age and sex of the individual. The popular culture stereotype a normal grown African American mother to be crossly overweight and poorly dressed. They are also presented to be church going and extremely religious to the point that they can be delusional. They are also expected by the society to be passive in the presence of white male authority. On the other hand, the young female in the African American population is stereotyped to be very promiscuous and poor fashion. Mostly they are portrayed to be having long fake nail extensions. They are viewed to be self centered and have tendencies of picking fights. The young black American female is also viewed to be very loud and greedy. Given their association with promiscuity, the young black American females are seen to be baby machines and unloving or unlovable. Because of their stereotyped poor backgrounds, the popular culture presents them to totally rely on welfare.

Stereotypes of the male African American are presented by the popular culture to be having bestial strength. They are portrayed to be oversexed and having bigger genitalia. In most cases, African American males are portrayed to be relying on their mothers until a very advanced age. Young males are stereotyped to be criminals and are involved in drug use and dealing. They are often portrayed as physically oriented and not mentally oriented. This has especially been the explanation that has been used to explain the stereotyping the male African American as an excellent performer in physical sports such as boxing, football and others. The most positive stereotype of African American is that they are excellent performers especially in sports. In today’s media, they are portrayed as excellent entertainers especially in dance and music.

Origin of Stereotypes of African Americans

African Americans are direct descendants of slaves shipped from Africa during the slave trade period. The Anglo-Saxon colonists who were owners of large plantation farms in the United States which utilized slave labor are responsible for the negative stereotypes of African Americans in the society today ( Smith,1990). The colonists believed that the Africans were naturally inferior to the whites intellectually. This was their strategy for justifying slavery and their continued subjection of the blacks to the most inhumane conditions in their farms with the aim of putting the blacks in the lower socioeconomic conditions. Most of the stereotypes of the African American population today came from the slave period where the whites saw the blacks as primitive, childlike and cannibalistic individuals. The colonists presented Africans to be people who were easily excited by simple things. They were also presented to be individuals who believed in witchcraft and were unchristian. Their intellectual inferiority according to Smith (1990) is portrayed by the white which showing the blacks being used to do very primitive tasks which profit the white men while they received nothing for payment.

While the colonists used their brutal force and fire power to enslave Africans, they used excuses such as intellectual inferiority of the black people so to ensure that they do not get to hold positions of power in the government. Even after use of slaves was abandoned, the already created stereotypes still existed in the population. Most of the negative stereotypes of the African American population have therefore originated from the period of slavery which had the main intend of portraying the slaves as inferior to the whites.

Effects of the Stereotypes of African American

Although most stereotypes about the general African American population may not be true, most members of this group have faced prejudice for being members of this group as result of the stereotypes. For example in the early post colonial period, there were very few African Americans who held big positions in the government due to the stereotype about their intellectual inferiority. Before the election of president Obama to office, Americans were yet to get their first African American president. Until sixties when there were active movements championing for the rights of equal status for every American citizen, the blacks were seen and treated as inferior to the whites in many social aspects. In the 1980s which focused in the athletic superiority of the blacks, there were many publications and researches that aimed at proving that African Americans were indeed intellectually inferior but athletically superior (Massey, 2008).

Today, due to the negative stereotypes of criminality, joblessness as well drug usage and distribution associated with the young African American males, many individuals have found themselves behind bars as a result of racial profiling due to the negative stereotypes in the society. The positive stereotypes portraying African American males as athletic have made many otherwise poor people from poor background enjoy education through sport scholarships as they focused on the talent they truly belief that they have which is reinforced by the positive stereotype. Some individuals have also got sponsorships to major sport events just on the belief of positive stereotype held by their sponsors (Rodin & Steinberg, 2003).

Effects of Stereotypes in the American Society

With stereotypes being the generally held public view on a given group of people, stereotypes have diverse effects to the society. Given that the American population is made up of people from diverse ethnic origins, stereotyping reinforces segregation and discrimination of individuals based on these stereotypes. A good example is the case of racial profiling because of the stereotypes about each racial group in the society. In many occasions, some individuals may be denied to enjoy a certain service just because of these stereotypes. A good example is the case of people who have been denied the chance of living in a given neighborhood because of the negative stereotypes associated with people of his group.

References

Massey, D. S. (2008). Categorically Unequal: The American Stratification System: New York. Russell Sage Foundation.

Rodin, J. & Steinberg, S. P. (2003). Public discourse in America: conversation and community in the twenty-first century. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

Smith, T. W. (1990). Ethnic images. GSS Topical Report No. 19. National Opinion Research Center.

Utman, C. H. (1997). Performance effects of motivational state: A meta ananlysis. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 1, 170–182.