The Labeling Process

It’s the natural course of conversation, upon meeting someone, to forward questions to the new-found acquaintance in order to get to know more about them. Questions that enable us to know personal information such as name, age, occupation… But most of the time, when these questions are asked, we don’t realize what purpose the answers really serve. Is it out of sheer interest that our curious minds seek them? Or is it because we feel the constant need to label new products and classify them in the little market of ours?

In a country where even areas are divided among sects, it is only logical that classification comes to one as naturally as the ability to walk and talk. However, this form of prejudice is not inborn, it is acquired. Discrimination is a learned behavior. Gender, race, nationality, religion…etc. are different examples of things we’re judged by. And aside from these congenital characteristics, we also get judged by our acquired characteristics, such as taste in music, or clothing, or books.

Dear society; ‘Male’ doesn't mean blue, race-cars, and sports. ‘Female’ doesn't mean pink, barbie dolls, and soap operas. Being Asian doesn't magically make one super smart or addicted to rice. Being Syrian doesn't translate to being poor. Being Muslim doesn't mean being a terrorist. It’s about time people stopped stereotyping and making assumptions. Because these labels do not make us who we are, our actions do.

With that said, I will now introduce myself. I’m a seventeen year old Syrian-Armenian girl with a passion for music and writing. No, I do not live in Bourj Hammoud… and neither do my grandparents. I obviously don’t go to Haigazian University, and I do not hate Turks. You’d be surprised how many times I hear those assumptions followed by the cocky “am I right?” question.

See beyond labels and brands. #NoToStereotyping