Tuning diversity

  Joseph is 16 years old but is still a little boy to his family, although he does not agree being treated like a child. He is an adolescent: reliable, intelligent and fond of music, fond of rock music, but such likes are not related with modifying behaviors, or least going over permitted or learn at home.

  He is too young to know about stereotypes and how they make life complex, thus illogical believes used in a pejorative and negative sense.

  With origin in the ancient Greece, the word stereotype is composed by the terms stereo (solid) and types (mark). During the XVIII century, the term was related to the impression of copies out of solid blocks and the idea kept implicated through the rigid origin. Later, they reproduced such materials indefinitely. Walter Lippman refers the concept in his book Public Opinion (1922) as “images in our heads that resist changes”.

  And we are going to maintain such patterns living XXI century? Its hard to believe so, but there are still behaviours that resemble such simplistic society’s points of view, where rockers always break rules or pretty women are lack of intelligence, where a youngster is not able to carry an important job, even the skin color and the social position could be relevant when receiving a certain position at work.

  Cuba is diverse and such diversity should be encouraging to us. Avoiding such common attitudes would increase the beauty our life.

   Stereotypes are considered canons, but it does not mean “believe them”, even if you dare to avoid “what is normal”, it would rain hate and some “acts” for being consequent with your way of thinking.

  I truly believe there exit certain people that go within minorities to let free frustration and fears. I do not lie myself. It’s real. There exist rebels who defend their own causes and look for acceptance in those spaces, because they provide them a “marriage” consequent to theirs personal intentions. But it is not proper to generalize.

  If it is a fact of how the familiar influence relates to being prepared to face life, that today is not monochrome but diverse, where there are groups that need to find a place, that need to fix… it is also necessary to trust them. Society in which we live has taught about confidence and reliance on the minorities.

  Although such conceptions can be changed through education, the family as core of the society, the school and the Medias should contribute more in modifying those negative attitudes.

  By now, we just have the aim to teach society what we And Joseph has its own aim that is defending the rock music, or the same that is preserving his static point of view. Maturity will wide his diapason through other genres, either musical or not. And we, the adults should avoid marks or spots as the only way to open our minds to diversity.