Understanding Discrimination: Discrimination by definition is unfair or unusual treatments towards a certain group of people and as such can take many forms, targeting individuals based on their race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or other characteristics. Unfortunately, discrimination can be recognized everywhere: workplace, school, social media and even streets. Because of lack of education about this topic, some people don’t even realize that their behaviour is discriminatory so understanding discrimination is the first step in prevention of this widely presented phenomena.
Every day society becomes more interconnected due to globalization. Despite the fact that races and ethnicities are increasingly mixing, discrimination is still overly present. Media is serving the purpose of spreading the information which in most cases is desirable, however, it can lead to spreading of hate speech that actually results in further discrimination or making groups allinged in promoting hatered towards certain ethnic and race groups. This is a concerning issue because of the negative impact discrimination leaves in individuals. This is particularly the case among young adults.
In addition, facing discrimination – especially racism – has long been associated with negative effects on overall well-being, such as higher levels of stress, poor cognitive function, anxiety, depression and substance use. Statistics claims that individuals who experience discrimination often meaning few times per month were 25% more prone to be diagnosed with some type of psychological disorder and twice as likely to experience psychological distress.
Moreover, discrimination does not only underestimates individual’s dignity but also causes chain of events in a form of social cohesion.
In order to be able to prevent discrimination and fight with hate speech people have to realize that our individual differences are not obsticles but an opportunity to learn from each other and grow our tolerance. This is not easy as it sounds because all spheres of society must work allinged to achieve the goal of building an environment established on core principles of equality, respect and acceptance. We must take into account that this is process that requires taking proactive steps and dedication but it can lead to enriched society that embraces diversity and celebrates inclusivity which an ideal we should all strive for.