Blown Expectations - On Stereotypes

I saw the minivan from a distance, American flag window doohickey flapping in the breeze. Being Tucson and all, I'm thinking just another redneck, cowgirl soccer mom. I tend to take a dim view of people who drive around with flags or those multi-issue, multi-colored ribbons on their cars. I dislike slogans, and I have little patience for bandwagon mentality. I'm not bragging - I'm just being honest here.

I get closer and I notice the equality sticker on the bumper, which is pretty distinct.

So as I pull up behind this car at the stoplight, I notice another sticker that reads:

Jesus was a community organizer.
Pontius Pilate was a governor.

I'm thinking cool, a pretty liberal person, despite the flag. But as I passed the van when the light turned green, I noticed that the driver was an elderly Asian man. I hate stereotypes, but in Tucson, the older Asian community is pretty conservative.

Why am I posting this? Because this brief little incident exposed a whole mess of my stereotypes, some of which I hadn't ever really thought about.

And because I sincerely regret that I make assumptions or have expectations based on stereotypes. I don't like that my brain automatically puts people into boxes and attaches labels to their foreheads. I don't even care that it's supposed to do that (see the previous link).

I don't like this tendency partly because it makes us stupid, but mostly because it limits my opportunity to know people for who they really are, rather than as some two-dimensional image in my brain.

I meet a lot of people every day. Part of my job is being able to look at someone and know a great deal about their health, their diet, and their fitness. And I'm good at it.

But we all do the same things with people based on clothing, diction, body shape, vehicles, bumper stickers, and/or an American flag doohickey attached to the window of their car.

I wonder what a day might feel like if I could just set all of those stereotypes aside and see the world without those filters. As much as possible, I want to try to do this -- or, if nothing else, be mindful of the stereotypes that come up.

Tags: Blown Expectations, Stereotypes, culture, life, people, brain, psychology, personal growth