Are we talking about labeling, or stereotypes ?
A label is something like "gay", while a stereotype is something like he must work in "interior design" or be "effeminate".
Are they good or bad, even if they are positive ? Well, let's see. Sometimes they are kinda silly actually.
i.e. cooking may be a positive thing, but if someone says: "I see you are of X nationality, you must cook well", I'd go ummmmmmm. These things are like ... not connected d00d !!
I see stereotypes as superficial characteristics of groups of people. And they are are usually brought up to make it easy to make fun of or to separate groups of people. And why would you separate a group of people ? Most likely to make them a target of some sort. And I don't think targeting is a good thing, as most likely the target is used as a thing to lash out your aggression/frustrations onto.
So, the bottom line is perhaps that some stereotypes are harmless or amusing, and perhaps cause no trouble, but some are negative, and should be avoided. |
