Fear is a vital response to physical and emotional danger. Humans need rational fear. If they didn't feel it, they couldn't protect themselves from legitimate threats. Still, often we humans fear situations that are far from life-or-death, and thus we hang back and resist actions for no good reason.
In many cases, people fear most what they don't understand. Unfamiliar things tend to make us feel more afraid, as do things that have been mythologized as “scary” or have been traditionally accepted as taboo. As we gain knowledge and better understanding of our irrational fears, we also gain control over them.
A recent survey from Chapman University found that having a lower level of education, particularly having only a high school diploma/GED or less, was the most consistent predictor of fear. People with lower levels of education exhibit significantly higher levels of fear regarding:
Personal safety
Their future (running out of money, getting sick, etc)
Internet usage (identity theft, being stalked, etc)
Criminal victimization
Phobias (heights, clowns, blood, etc)
Government (Obamacare, gun control, etc)
Immigration (immigrants cause crime, bring disease, etc)
Natural Disasters (asteroid, volcanoes, earthquakes, etc)
Man-made disasters (wars, terrorist attacks, etc)
(Olga Khazan. "The Psychology of Irrational Fear." The Atlantic. October 31, 2014.)
Culture, itself, can exacerbate irrational fears. Karen Franklin, forensic psychologist, found an incredible fact about people she interviewed who had been convicted of hate crimes against homosexuals: All of them insisted that their assaults were not motivated by hatred of homosexuals. What a contradiction. But, Franklin came to conceptualize the violence not in terms of individual hatred but as "an extreme expression of American cultural stereotypes and expectations regarding male and female behavior." She explains ...
"From this perspective, assaults on homosexuals and other individuals who deviate from sex role norms are viewed as a learned form of social control of deviance rather than a defensive response to personal threat."
"Thus, heterosexism is not just a personal value system, it is a tool in the maintenance of gender dichotomy. In other words, through heterosexism, any male who refuses to accept the dominant culture's assignment of appropriate masculine behavior is labeled early on as a 'sissy' or 'fag' and then subjected to bullying. Similarly, any woman who opposes male dominance and control can be labeled a lesbian and attacked."
"The potential of being ostracized as homosexual, regardless of actual sexual attractions and behaviors, puts pressure on all people to conform to a narrow standard of appropriate gender behavior, thereby maintaining and reinforcing our society's hierarchical gender structure."
(Karen Franklin. "Inside the Mind of People Who Hate Gays." PBS Frontline.)
When people hold irrational fear for groups that deviate from sex role norms, they often fall victim to accepting narrow views shared by their peer groups and by society at large. The phenomenon of group escalation, in which people engage in more intolerance as part of a prejudiced crowd than they would if alone, is a horrible reality. The dynamics of collective action, in which the group -- often under the leadership of its most impulsive member -- can take on a life of its own as it induce violence against targeted victims.
Franklin explains the reasons for such actions in peers, especially youthful groups ...
* To garner social status by individuals who are often cut off from other methods of achieving it.
* To reduce intragroup competition by displacing it onto an external object -- a surrogate victim scapegoated as deserving the abuse.
* To increase group solidarity and cohesion; this in turn bolsters interpersonal support in networks typically characterized by low cohesion and stability.
(Karen Franklin. "Inside the Mind of People Who Hate Gays." PBS Frontline.)
Men feel especially prone to demonstrating their masculinity to their peers; thus, group violence against people that deviate from sex role norms is an ideal way for males to prove their manliness against those they stereotype as underlings or subhumans. These men believe they are enforcing gender norms against those they consider especially weak, so they feel the need to exhibit dominant and competitive behaviors and attack as some misguided display of honor and strength.
Most common stereotypes about gays and transgender humans are related to cross-sex characteristics. Significant numbers of individuals characterize male homosexuals as mentally ill, promiscuous, lonely, insecure, and likely to be child molesters, while lesbians have been described as aggressive and hostile toward men.
Another reason many detest those who deviate from sex role norms is that they consider their actions to be immoral because of strong language in the Bible prohibiting males from "lying with" males (especially Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 and Romans 1:26-27). Yet, many other Biblical prohibitions (e.g., against intercourse during menstruation or against masturbation) are seemingly ignored by modern culture, so it's clear that many can set aside the moral objections against deviation when they choose to do so.
Transphobia
Transgenderism is highly misunderstood: It is feared by a large segment of American society. Transphobia (or much less commonly transprejudice) is a range of antagonistic attitudes and feelings against transsexuality and transsexual or transgender people -- those who are gender variant, non-binary, and transgender -- based on the expression of their internal gender identity.
Transfeminist theorist and author Julia Serano argues in her book Whipping Girl that transphobia is rooted in sexism and is fueled by insecurities people have about gender and traditional gender norms. She locates the origins of both transphobia and homophobia in what she calls "oppositional sexism," the belief that male and female are "rigid, mutually exclusive categories, each possessing a unique and nonoverlapping set of attributes, aptitudes, abilities, and desires."
Transgender people subjected to violence, in a range of cultural contexts, frequently report that transphobic violence is expressed in homophobic terms. The tendency to translate violence against a trans person to homophobia reflects the role of gender in attribution of homosexuality as well as the fact that hostility connected to homosexuality is often associated with the perpetrators' prejudices about particular gender practices and their visibility.
(Thomas Spijkerboer. Fleeing Homophobia: Sexual Orientation,
Gender Identity and Asylum. 2013.)
Researchers report although often rooted in homophobia, transphobia -- disgust and fear towards people who do not conform to society's gender expectations -- is very similar to racism and sexism. And, even though racism and sexism are becoming generally unacceptable in modern society, significantly more individuals still maintain transphobic views without fear of censure.
(Sue Wing Sue. Microaggressions and Marginality: Manifestation, Dynamics, and Impact. 2010.)
Without a doubt, transphobic individuals act out aggressively toward those they fear. Here is a summary of findings that support that premise:
"According to the American Psychological Association, transgender children are likelier than other children to experience harassment and violence in school, foster care, residential treatment centers, homeless centers and juvenile justice programs. Researchers say trans youth routinely experience taunting, teasing and bullying at school, and that nearly all trans youth say they were verbally or physically harassed in school, particularly during gym class, at school events, or when using single-sex restrooms. Three-quarters report having felt unsafe.
"As adults, transgender people are frequently subjected to ridicule, stares, taunting and threats of violence, even when just walking down the street or walking into a store. A U.S. survey of 402 older, employed, high-income transgender people found that 60% reported violence or harassment because of their gender identity. 56% had been harassed or verbally abused, 30% had been assaulted, 17% had had objects thrown at them, 14% had been robbed and 8% had experienced what they characterized as an unjustified arrest.
"A study of 81 transgender people in Philadelphia found 30% reported feeling unsafe in public because they were transgender, with 19% feeling uncomfortable for the same reason. When asked if they had ever been forced to have sex, experienced violence in their home, or been physically abused, the majority answered yes to each question.
"A review of American studies on sexual violence towards transgender people found that around 50% of transgender people have been sexually assaulted."
(Genny Beemyn. The Lives of Transgender People. 2011.)
(Donald R. Chrisler and Joan C. McCreary. Handbook of Gender Research in Psychology, Volume 2. 2010.)
Walter O. Bockting. Transgender Health and HIV Prevention: Needs Assessment Studies from Transgender Communities Across the United States. 2006.)
Rebecca Stotzer. "Violence against transgender people: A review of United States data." Aggression and Violent Behavior 14. 2009.)
Isn't it so true that fearing what we don't understand can lead to intolerance and violence against whatever generates that irrational fear? Although most of us -- even those who may criticize or even brutalize others -- profess that we "do not hate" people who deviate from our norms, we must commit to dealing with our own inadequacies instead of joining a crowd and stereotyping gays and transgender people.
And, how do we create a society that accepts deviations and that acts with grace and respect toward all? We simply face our fears and interact with individuals who reside outside of the norm.
Dr. Gregory M. Herek, Professor of Psychology at the University of California at Davis, says ...
"Because they provide information, face-to face interactions tend to refute stereotypes and reduce ignorance, which Marmor (1980) identified as the most important sources of hostility toward homosexual persons. At the same time, interpersonal encounters have an emotional impact that individuals can generalize to all lesbians and gay men. Thus, heterosexuals who know lesbians and gay men are better able than others to recognize stereotypes as inaccurate, and are more likely to express tolerant attitudes as well."
(Gregory M. Herek. "Hating Gays: An Overview of Scientific Studies." PBS Frontline)
Guess what? We all know this -- male, female, hetero, homo, trans, Christian, Jew, Muslim, atheist, white, black, brown, yellow, or any mix of demographic -- we all know that we when we take time and effort to befriend others and to truly understand them, our fears and phobias disappear. We simply have to show, not just profess, our humanity. We have to interact and to proverbially "walk the walk."
While inter-group contact and meaningful dialogue can reduce prejudices and eliminate stereotypes, education is the most important factor in promoting tolerance and peaceful coexistence. We must educate ourselves and our offspring about irrational behaviors to facilitate interaction.
Simple tolerance is the first step to understanding our fears about others. Tolerance involves the appreciation of diversity and the ability to live and let others live. As William Ury, co-founder of Harvard’s Program on Negotiation notes, "tolerance is not just agreeing with one another or remaining indifferent in the face of injustice, but rather showing respect for the essential humanity in every person." Beyond planting seeds of tolerance, we must further extend our friendship in order to take important steps to stop senseless discrimination. Those too obstinate to do this will remain in irrational fear.
Still I Rise
You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may tread me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I'll rise.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise.
Maya Angelou (1928-2014)
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