One of the fascinating aspects of our species is the extraordinary physical and cultural diversity of its memb

Question

One of the fascinating aspects of our species is the extraordinary physical and cultural diversity of its members. Yet this is a source of conflict and inequality, because differences rather than similarities between groups often shape human relationships. Often people are distinguished on the basis of their inherited physical characteristics or learned cultural traits. As the result of these differences, groups are formed and they are regarded by other people as being different.We must face the fact that throughout history relationships among racial and ethnic groups have been marked by antagonism, inequality, and violence. Over the course of the 20th century alone millions of people have been slaughtered and many more millions subjected to humiliation, cruelty, and injustice for no apparent reason other than their membership in a racial or ethnic group.In the past ten years we have experienced "ethnic cleansing" in Bosnia, slaughter in Rwanda, and martyrdom and slavery of

Answer 1

Not only do people fear that and those who are different, but many people are so caught up in their beliefs and the beliefs of those around them that that they never challenge, themselves that they may be wrong, or that there may be other acceptable viewpoints.. They cerainly would not consider going against the grain of whatever the current popular belief is among their peer group. Nobody wants to stand up.

Answer 2

I used to think a lot about this in College, especially when I was doing a lot of advocacy for different minority groups.

I couldn't really find anything that addressed this concern in the library but after doing alot of thinking about it - I concluded, maybe wrongfully, that the injustices, ethnic cleansing, murders, etc., that you are referring to are humans awareness of their own mortality, the fear that this awareness causes, and their insecure reaction to this fear which, as you well know from your studies, can be deadly.

To me, religious discrimination that results in alot of the attrocites in the headlines is caused by awareness of mortality, fear of this and the insecurity it causes, and the irrational behaviors that result like screwy religiouls laws and rituals that end up in the deaths of others.

All from the awareness of and subsequent fear of death.