Visit the #BeatBias Resolution homepage to view all the steps released so far. 

Step 5: Swallow your pride and sip on some knowledge.

Whether or not you have a diverse group of friends, to some degree we are all ignorant of certain communities in our city. And the less familiar we are with a particular community, the more our unconscious bias will use stereotypes to compensate for that familiarity. So let’s learn a little something… 

Today’s Action Item #1

• Choose the community from the list below that you are least familiar with. Then click the link to read an article that provides some perspective on who the community is, or the issues or challenges the community faces. We won’t pretend this article was able to transform your understanding of the particular community, but were you surprised by what you read? Did the article contradict any stereotypes you may have? Alright, one more quick item for today…
  • Asian American
    • The Economist: “The model minority is losing patience”
    • The New York Times: “It Isn’t Easy Being an Asian-American”
  • Black Americans
    • Gawker: “What Black Parents Tell Their Sons About the Police”
    • The Huffington Post: “This Is What It's Like To Be The Only Black Kid In Class”
  • Catholic Americans
    • National Catholic Reporter: "Faith, Fear and the Politics of Mercy"
  • Jewish Americans
    • The Huffington Post: "The Struggle to Understand what it means to be Jewish in America Today"
    • The Atlantic: "Hanukkah with the Jews for Jesus"
  • Latinos
    • The Huffington Post: "Why I Love Being Latino in the United States"
    • PBS: "What It Means to Be Latino"
  • LGBT People
    • The New York Times: “Once a Pariah, Now a Judge: The Early Transgender Journey of Phyllis Frye”
    • The Globe and Mail: “Is holding hands OK? How same-sex couples navigate public displays of affection”
  • Muslim Americans
    • The New York Times: “Young Muslim Americans Are Feeling the Strain of Suspicion”
    • The Huffington Post: “What's It Like Being Muslim in America?”
  • Women
    • The Huffington Post: "4 Women's Issues That Haven't Changed Since 1911"
    • The Atlantic: "Why Women Still Can’t Have It All"

Today’s Action Item #2 

• Choose the same community from the list below and you will be taken to a media source written by people from that community. Scan the article headlines and think about the issues that may be important to that community, and then read a few you may be interested in. Did the reporter write the article from a different perspective than a reporter with your perspective would have written it?
  • Asian American
    • Asian Fortune
  • Black Americans
    • The Root
  • Catholic Americans
    • National Catholic Reporter
  • Jewish Americans
    • The Jewish Press
  • Latinos
    • The Huffington Post - Latino Voices
  • LGBT People
    • The Advocate
  • Muslim Americans
    • Islamic News Daily
  • Women
    • The Huffington Post - Women

Hopefully today’s exploration may have given you a slightly better understanding of the community, but it can’t end here. Come back tomorrow at 10am, because in the next step we are encouraging you to go outside your comfort zone.