Overcoming Ethnocentrism
I am Dayhme Eunice Y. Adobas, a current Grade 12 student of STCDCFI, an advocate against ethnocentrism because I believe that even though I am still a student, I have the power to provide knowledge for those people who think that ethnocentrism is advantageous. Especially now that we are going through modernization and technological advancements are on-going, might as well use this platform to share my learnings to other people.
Do you feel superior just because you belong to a certain race or culture? Do you disregard others’ culture just because it doesn’t fit well with yours? Stop that. It’s not healthy, it’s just going to make you be rigid to change. These judgments are made in relation to aspects like religion, race, behavior, custom and language. The cultural identity of any ethnic group is uniquely identified by any aspects. This attitude makes an individual to view other groups as being inferior in comparison to his or her own. (Wood, 2009, p. 163-173)
Some people might not be aware of this but it happens every single day. Especially with how they change their tone when talking to someone with a different race or culture. Also, some use this in a way of verbal abuse like telling them to go back to where they belong OR forcing them to do what your race or culture does. As they say, it is shown in many ways and the most common or familiar aspect of ethnocentrism are food preferences. In different parts of the world, we develop different preferences for certain food and drinks and when others find it weird or exotic, they tend to be disgusted even without trying it themselves or just by hearing it from other ethnocentric people.
Honestly, we can’t say that no one’s ethnocentric, no matter how much open-minded we claim we are, there’s still this instance where we tend to judge others culture even if we don’t say it. From food preferences to cultural practices, ethnocentrism occurs but why do we have to settle with this? The fact that it divides us makes it not a good thing to adapt. It gives false assumptions about other cultures making people generalize the things they do in their own customs. Individuals who are ethnocentric hold to their own culture and they can’t appreciate change that is being brought by modernization. Such individuals may end up remaining illiterate by rigidly holding to their own cultures and not ready to empress change.
Let us stop ethnocentrism by appreciating each other’s differences. It takes time for some but let us at least learn so as to avoid any misconceptions or stereotypes. At the end of the day, to achieve a geocentric mindset one has to identify and discard old habits in order to open up to the possibilities that lie outside of one’s comfort zone. By opening up, you invite innovation, collaboration and a myriad of opportunities for both your interpersonal relationships and workplace environment. (Tolbert A. S., 71)
Be accepting, be open, and be aware because there’s is no culture that is superior to the other.