Tolerance

Tolerance is the appreciation of diversity and the ability to exercise a fair and objective attitude towards those whose opinions, practices, religion, culture differ from one's own. Genuine tolerance is respect for the dignity of others. It focuses more on our common humanity than on our differences.

There are many good, moral reasons to be tolerant. ⁽¹⁾ We are all susceptible to ignorance and prejudice, which make us inclined toward hurtful behavior.  Where ignorance and prejudice cannot be corrected or eliminated, we ought to try at least to minimize their severity. Working on our own tolerance training is an effort to achieve for our selves the least-worst problem.

There are many situations where tolerance needs to be exercised: parents tolerate their children’s behavior; friends tolerate others’ weaknesses; governments tolerate dissent; a religion tolerates homosexuality; a state tolerates a minority religion; a society tolerates abnormal behavior.

One can only address tolerance when it is practiced voluntarily and not compelled; otherwise it would be a case of simply suffering or enduring things that one rejects but against which one is powerless.

Roots of Intolerance

In the absence of their own experiences, individuals base their impressions and opinions of one another on assumptions. These assumptions can be influenced by the beliefs of those who are most influential in their lives, including parents or other family members, colleagues, educators, and/or role models. ⁽²⁾

Individual attitudes are influenced by the images of other groups in the media. Sometimes school curriculums and educational literature provide biased and/or negative historical accounts of world cultures. Education or schooling based on myths can reduce tolerance for diversity and differences.

Religious Tolerance

Most people have difficulty being tolerant to those that follow a different religious or spiritual path than their own. They continue to focus so much on differences that they lose sight of where values are the same.

Three-quarters of the world's human population of seven billion live under government curbs on religion, or among serious "social hostilities" involving faith issues. A 2012 Pew report shows the stark picture of a "rising tide" of intolerance and government restrictions on religious matters. It cites evidence of "crimes, malicious acts and violence motivated by religious hatred or bias, as well as increased government interference with worship or other religious practices". ⁽³⁾

Despite the high ideals of its constitution, America has struggled with religious intolerance since its early colonial days. The story of religious intolerance in America’s past is awkward and embarrassing and occasionally bloody. ⁽⁴⁾

Racial Tolerance

In different parts of the world, ethnic or racial intolerance varies – from offensive or thoughtless remarks, to efforts to exterminate specific ethnic or racial groups as national policy. 

The world’s religions have rarely been helpful in opposing ethnic intolerance. While it is true that some individuals have heroically opposed oppression, religion as a whole has all too frequently sided with the oppressors. ⁽⁵⁾

America as a nation applauds its ability to move beyond race or ethnicity. But in a 2012 survey, 51% of Americans expressed explicit anti-black attitudes, compared with 48% in a similar 2008 survey. When measured by an implicit racial attitudes test, the number of Americans with anti-black sentiments jumped to 56%, up from 49%. ⁽⁶⁾

For politicians, it is political suicide to openly profess racial bias. After election of the first American president who is half-black, and record levels of voting by people of color, reactionary politicians are erecting more barriers to voter registration. Today for millions of poor, black Americans voting freedoms of are unduly burdened or denied. ⁽⁷⁾

That is the dilemma of racial tolerance today. We have hints, suggestions, and indications of racial bias all around us. But it is typically unspoken, if not altogether invisible, most of the time. And where it's not invisible, there is often a plausible cover story that can be told as to why racially differential treatment was somehow justifiable or legitimate. ⁽⁸⁾

All of this makes waging the fight against racial intolerance much tougher. It is now quiet, or rationalized and thereby hidden in plain view.

Cultural Tolerance

Culture is defined by a set of practices followed by a group of people. Not all culture is definitive. Culture can be extremely generalized, and the lines between cultures quite gray. Every country may have its own culture, and then every part of that country may have its own culture. Every city may have its own culture, and then every neighborhood within that city. Some cultures can have members scattered around a country or even the world. ⁽⁹⁾

 

The general thought is that we live in a time of “global monoculture”. It would seem that in such a world, coercion is absent, many languages are tolerated and multiculturalism is officially extolled. But, the power of dominant global cultures is such that they tend to overwhelm all local cultures, or reduce them to a status of inferiority.

Today, there is increasing awareness of cultural diversity, which threatens established cultures. The resulting rising number of terrorist groups and extremists increase the intolerance of the cultural diversity. Today we are seeing the effect of globalization and the Internet on long-simmering cultural and religious intolerance, and the conflagrations are growing.

The media should use positive images to promote understanding and cultural sensitivity. The more people are exposed to positive media messages about other cultures, the less they are likely to find faults with one another.

Educators are instrumental in promoting tolerance and peaceful coexistence. For instance, schools that create a tolerant environment help young people respect and understand different cultures.

Solutions for Intolerance

Individuals should continually focus on being tolerant of others in their daily lives. This involves consciously challenging the stereotypes and assumptions that they typically encounter in making decisions about others and/or working with others either in a social or a professional environment. ⁽¹⁰⁾

The media should use positive images to promote understanding and cultural sensitivity. The more people are exposed to positive media messages about other cultures, the less they are likely to find faults with one another.

The most effective ways to solve the intolerance problem is education. It begins in childhood. It’s important to teach tolerance at home and in school. If parents are intolerant, then they raise intolerant kids. To help this, the educational system needs to focus on imparting tolerance. It is imperative that new generations learn to be tolerant.

There’s a piece of tolerance inside all of us. It’s important to try to find this little piece. Everyone faces a lot of problems caused by intolerance everyday, even inside the home and workplace is where we need to begin to practice tolerance. We ourselves should work to not make the problem bigger. ⁽¹¹⁾

Let’s Engage:

For this blog, I’m asking you to engage! Don’t just read passively. Write your views on tolerance directly on the blog! Here are some questions to get you going:

1. Any discussion on Tolerance is not complete without addressing behaviors and actions that are NOT tolerable. Can anyone be expected to accept direct violence or physical threats without fighting back? Can one simply “turn the other cheek”.
2. Do you consider the current Middle East conflict a religious war? Or radical extremists?
3. Do the police shootings in Ferguson, Missouri demonstrate racial bias?
4. What are the root-causes of ethnic or racial intolerance? How can we ourselves avoid having it, or showing it?
5. Today, in your own city, state or country, is the problem of tolerance getting better? Or worse?
6. Has the Internet affected religious or racial tolerance?
7. Is it reasonable to hope that someday all religions and races will co-exist peacefully? Is that simply a pipedream?

References:

1. Is Tolerance a Virtue? http://goo.gl/j2oPx1
2. Religious intolerance on the rise worldwide: http://goo.gl/XwEXZK
3. Our History of Religious Intolerance Must Come to an End: http://goo.gl/sDsrTV
4. America's True History of Religious Tolerance: http://goo.gl/j0D36M
5. Guardian: America is still a deeply racist country: http://goo.gl/RpsDjH
6. 2012 AP poll: U.S. majority have prejudice against blacks: http://goo.gl/ybGk3D
7. 11 Facts About Racial Discrimination: http://goo.gl/Srjc71
8. Cultural Intolerance: http://goo.gl/ElxwxR
9. 8 Habits of Intolerant People: http://goo.gl/vIlfEC
10. Intolerance in all the world – problem-solution essay: http://goo.gl/ogxwZO
11. Excellent essay on Tolerance: http://goo.gl/vMhyUd

 Jim Pinto

Carlsbad, CA.

USA

27 February 2015