I HATE Stereotyping!

This is a post about stereotyping. (I mean obviously, look at the title :P). And why I think stereotyping is wrong.

To dicuss this, first of all we must have a definition of stereotyping. Stereotyping is when you class someone as a certain type of person because of a certain pastime of theirs, the sort of music they listen to, or because how they dress, or how a person acts.

Stereotyping is so integrated into our society today, it is almost futile to think about trying to stop people stereotyping. Even I stereotype, however much I am against it, and most of the time I am not even thinking about it. It has become second nature, but even so, when I realise I am doing it I try to stop it. It won't hurt anyone to try. Most people stereotype themselves into a group of people to try and fit in, because they feel they need to. And some of the time those people go to the extreme, and then put the blame it on the category of people that they are ''fitting in with.''

Halfway through writing this blog, I had this online conversation with a person whom I have known for a short while of time, who has exactly helped me prove my point.
(Note, They started the conversation, not me. And also, for the purposes of privacy, the guy who was talking to me is going to be named 'Mr. X!!!'. Also, this is all directly copied and pasted from the MSN conversation. Not one bit has been changed, except for his name.)

Mr X!!! says:
wot kind or person woud u call urself as, emo, chav
Lizi; says:
Nothing. I dont stereo type. I am myself. Not anything else and I dont 'fit' into a stereotypical group and i don't try to.
Mr X!!! says:
bull shit there are only a few ppl that dont fit into any
Lizi; says:
your mum bullshit!
Mr X!! says:
now thats just mean
Mr X!!! says:
wot did i say to make u say that
Mr X!!! says:
and i can more or less guess wot u are
Mr X!!! says:
or wot u were in prinry skl (Note, by prinry skl he means Primary School)
Mr X!! says:
there like 3 ppl in every school that doent fall into any stereo types
Lizi; says:
That's just cause everyone TRIES to fit into a stereotype because they are a lowlife and want to be the same as everyone else, not express themself as an individual.
Mr X!!! says:
thats a lie. not every one. not me
Mr X!!! says:
and thats onli coz most ppl do
Mr X!!! says:
and wot ur thinking of are emos
Mr X!!! says:
there the only ppl like that (Note, the phrasing in this sentence is rather misleading. What he's saying is ''They're the only people like that'', Referring to the ''emo'' comment he made earlier.)
Lizi; says:
No, dude. you have a lot to learn mate.
Mr X!!! says:
no i dont u do
Mr X!!! says:
a hell of a lot
Lizi; says:
Mr X, just shutup.


This is a prime example of how the most of the people view the world. Everyone fits in somewhere, and when they don't, they are an outcast. However, most people are also very contradicting. I don't know if you noticed, but 'Mr X!!!' also contradicted himself in that paragraph. He said that everyone fits into a group of people (''bull shit there are only a few ppl that dont fit into any''), but then straight away afterwards said that he himself didn't fit into a stereotype, just after he was attacked for not being individualistic. (''thats a lie. not every one. not me'') He then immediatly went on to talk about emo's. This guy, and many other people are so shallow that they can't see below what a person is wearing or what they're listening to to actually see the real them.

As I have said in previous blogs, this world is so ironic. To be popular and to be liked, you have to fit in somewhere. You have to swim with the ocean to avoid being drowned by the current. However, to be liked you also have to be individualistic. You have to try and be different and stand out from the crowd so people will notice you. Only dead fish swim with the sea. To be liked you have to swim against the current, but also you have to swim with it at the same time. Technically, thats standing still. You can't get anywhere standing still. You can accomplish nothing.

Why can't we just be who we are?

When I talk about stereotyping, I'm not just talking about Emo, Chav, Sweetmate etc, but also things like gay, and lesbian and racist. All of these are stereotyping too.

It doesn't hurt to have the same interests as anyone else, or to dress the same as another person, or to even copy a person and aspire to be them, because you admire them and their values. But that doesn't mean we should class everyone who dresses in black as a goth, everyone who likes to be by themselves an emo, every girl who is slightly macho a lesbian, and every boy who wears skinny jeans, or enjoy's girls' company a gay.
Every asian person, a terrorist.
Every person in tracksuits, a chav.
Every person who listens to rock, a grunge.
Every jewish person, stingy.

Every white person, a pikey.
Every muslim, an extremist.
Every homless person, a druggy,
Or every person with big hair and rainbow clothes, a seen kid.

Everyone with glasses, a geek.

Girl's who enjoy male's company, a whore.

Every person is slightly different, and should be who they want to be.
Don't call someone something because of what they look like or how they dress.
What they listen to, or who they hang around with.
Get to know someone before you start calling them anything.

Some stereotypes are negative, and some positive. But still, good or bad we should all just be who we are. It's fine to want to fit in. It's fine to be different. Do what you want. As long as it is what you want, and not what someone else has said you have to do.
Not what someone else has said you are.
Not what someone else has stereotyped you as.