To Eliminate Prejudice, Start With The Children

Have you ever been in a mall or other public setting and overheard a child ask his or her parent a question like, "Why is he walking funny?" "Why is he sitting in that chair?" or "Why is her skin so dark?" If you have, I would venture to guess that almost immediately afterwards you heard the parent scream at the child for asking the question or even say, "Never ask a question like that again!" Perhaps the question you heard was asked about you and maybe it embarassed or upset you that the child would ask such a question. You might have even gone back and told the parent what you thought of their loud mouthed kid.

Now let me tell you what happened to me tonight. I was at my church just before the service started and I was using one of the church's electric scooters to help me get around. As I passed a man and his three little girls, I heard one of the children say, "Daddy, why is that man riding that thing?" I continued on for a moment then my better sense took over. I turned around and rode up to the father and his three girls. Note that he had not reprimanded the child for asking the question. I looked at the gentleman and said, "If I may ask your permission sir, I overheard one of these young ladies ask why I am riding this chair and I would like to answer her question." He agreed to let me talk to his daughter and told me the child's name. I stuck out my hand and introduced myself to the little girl who looked to be about 5 years old. Then I asked her if she wanted to know why I was riding in the scooter. She shyly said "no" then she changed her mind. I answered her question by explaining that I was born differently than her and I could not walk as much as she can so I use the chair to help me get around. She then became excited with this new knowledge and gave me the biggest smile.

What is the difference between the two senarios I have presented? The obvious difference is that tonight nobody got upset and the child got her answer. But there is more long term difference. The child in the first senario who was told to shut up for being curious, if he is told that too many times, will think asking such questions is bad. Then the belief that asking the questions is bad turns into the belief that the answers are bad, hence being different is bad. I believe with all my heart this is the root of prejudice in today's society. We have all kinds of civil rights laws but they don't change the fact that our children are growing up thinking being different is bad so they fear people who are different. And the foundation of prejudice is fear. On the other hand, the child in the second senario, the one I spoke with tonight, will hopefully grow up knowing it is alright to ask questions and she will learn that most differences are God endowed. That child, prayerfully, will not grow up fearing people who are different but will, instead, grow up embracing the differences that make us all part of the human race.

I challenge you to embrace childhood curiosity. If you are a parent and your child asks a question, even if it embarasses you, try to answer the question for the child to the best of your ability. Please do not punish your child for asking the question, he or she is only being a child. And if you are a person who hears a child ask a question about you, I challenge you to swallow your pride and take a little time out of your schedule to speak with that child to explain why you are different. I challenge you to be as friendly and nonthreatening as possible and to ask the parent's permission before talking to the child but to make sure that child knows that his or her question is important.