De-humanizing others.

Climber

Climber

Well-known member
I've noticed a growing trend of the dehumanizing of people in order to minimize their suffering or loss.

In war, commanders use it as a way to get their troops to kill without hesitation.

Racists use it to justify treating others, based upon their nationality or skin color, poorly.

We've seen this in the escalating turmoil in this country to devalue the lives of victims to throw support behind the killers.

None of us are really innocent, I recall plenty of times when a motorcycle thief got no sympathy after dying in a crash running away from police.

Does somebody's action justify dehumanizing them?

Personally, I think it's significantly more valid than doing it because of their race, religion or sexual orientation.

Personally, I don't view pedophiles as being human anymore, I think that they sacrificed their Right to the Human Race by choosing to victimize a child in that manner.

Yeah, once you justify one level of dehumanizing the others may follow? I disagree, though I can see how some might view it that way.

Thoughts?
 
East Bay Mike

East Bay Mike

Well-known member
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Blankpage

Blankpage

alien
“Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you criticize them, you are a mile away from them and you have their shoes."
 
SVsick50

SVsick50

Well-known member
It's social media. I truly believe that.

I remember when I did my first insurance death claim - my eyes were welling up hearing an old widow talk about her dead husband. Now, after being so long in the business, I am not as moved - still empathetic, but I certainly don't well up like I did that first time almost two decades ago.

Now, imagine, people seeing violence, hate, and rage on a daily basis? Imagine people creating enemies for others through their posts? Inundation of this sort of stimuli must affect empathy in a negative way.

I personally don't share my politics nor my religion because I know people will simply bash me for it. I didn't have this fear before.
 
jiffy

jiffy

Well-known member
I believe you are referring to many recent events, where those killed or harmed have pasts with a history of trouble. In court they often question a persons credibility if they show a history of crime or deceit. If someone is found to have a history of criminal activity, and they have a past that shows that they are often in altercations, drug use, etc. this leads many to believe that person often seeks out trouble. Right or wrong it shows they may have a tendency to get themselves into situations that may lead to violence, harm, or jail time. It may dehumanize in some ways but it is the way a court determines severity of punishments. If you have a history of burglary and are found with a van full of stolen goods, the court will find your past transgressions very hard to overlook.
 
nebulous

nebulous

Well-known member
Night before last a "Protester" in Portland commentated that "We took out the Trash" regarding the murder of a White guy there. So it seems De-humanizing is quite popular there.
 
afm199

afm199

Well-known member
That's how we operate, always have, and always will. We humanize the small group around us that we depend on, our family, fellow workers, members of clubs we belong to, favorite entertainers, etc. We pretty much automatically dehumanize 99.99999% of humanity. Those deaths in Africa from AIDS, the inmates in prison, women habitually abused, and just about everyone else aren't happening to us, so they don't matter.

Every now and then we'll read a BLM poster and feel guilty for a day or ten, but truth is, it's not healthy.

That's life.
 
byke

byke

Well-known member
nebulous said:
Night before last a "Protester" in Portland commentated that "We took out the Trash" regarding the murder of a White guy there. So it seems De-humanizing is quite popular there.
Click to expand...

This is brilliant. A white guy is murdered in Portland with dehumanizing language and it's perceived as being very popular in Portland. Hey, that's not dehumanizing to the people of Portland, is it....?
 
Climber

Climber

Well-known member
What got me started thinking about this was a show my wife was watching where they were drug dealers and using female mules to transport their drugs from Mexico. They treated them like non-humans. One of the women had a bag break inside her stomach, they just cut her stomach open to retrieve the drugs right on the spot as she lay there dying.

That triggered a long branching thought train on how people dehumanize others, often for their station in life, not knowing anything about them besides some label put on them.
 
nebulous

nebulous

Well-known member
oh no, did i hurt the feelings of people who call murder victims trash?? oh my.





byke said:
This is brilliant. A white guy is murdered in Portland with dehumanizing language and it's perceived as being very popular in Portland. Hey, that's not dehumanizing to the people of Portland, is it....?
Click to expand...
 
lefty

lefty

Well-known member
Damn Climber-

You are DEEP. Yes. It is a useful tool. If we have empathy, it might make us take pause. This is one reason that travel is so important. It allows us to see that EVERYONE is the same.
 
T

TylerW

Agitator
Just last night I saw a trailer for the film "The 24th" which tells the story of the all-black 24th infantry division in 1917. I thought the final line in the trailer was particularly poignant to this discussion.

"When I aimed the gun, I saw a man. He did not see one back"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jv9cjDwrNdk

The softer version of this idea, and far more devious, is the concept of 'othering' Sure, they're still humans. They're just the other humans. the other ones that I don't care about.
 
wazzuFreddo

wazzuFreddo

WuTang is 4 the children
nebulous said:
Night before last a "Protester" in Portland commentated that "We took out the Trash" regarding the murder of a White guy there. So it seems De-humanizing is quite popular there.
Click to expand...

And yet you see the very opposite from the same sides regarding the shooting in Kenosha.
 
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