Living in a country with a more than shameful history of focussing on racial differences, just an idea or two:
I don't think think the question whether racial differences do exist, should be the main focus. It's the perceptions and stereotypes people have about it that should be changed. I'm in a previleged position to have students of several different cultures and races in my classes. If they were to speak to each other in there native tonque, many, if not most, would not be able to understand each other. For interest sake: if the beloved Mandela were to address our nation in his native tongue (Xhosa), most South Africans would not understand what he is saying, many not even a single word. (We have 11 official languages, while many more are spoken by a significant percentage of the population.) Also, I was born and raised in Namibia, a country north-west of South Africa, where I was exposed to several languages that are almost unknown in South Africa. Talking about experiencing cross-cultural differences!
We discuss cross-cultural and racial issues in class quite openly. HOWEVER, I always put much more emphasis on 1) intra-race than on inter- race differences, and on 2) similarities than differences between races. More specifically, the basis of my lectures is that there are mostly greater differences within groups than between groups. And I believe that it is easy to illustrate this, even if you have to use extreme examples. What I also do is to ask the students what they LIKE about another culture and its people. I'm usually specific and would e.g. ask blacks what they like about whites, or Xhosas what like about Zulus (the Xhosas and Zulus have a history of conflict). And then also ask them what they DO NOT LIKE about their own culture and people. This usually lay the table for interesting discussions and hopefully new insights. See eg M Zuckerman's 1990 article in American Psychologist (45, 1297-1303) on "Some dubious premises in research and theory on racial differences".
BTW, my University also conducts practical workshops on this topic ---and they are compulsory for every staff/faculty member on campus. At how many other universities is this the case? A student and I are about to start with a research project to determine the effectiveness of such programs and we will therefore appreciate it if colleagues with similar experiences and interests could get in touch with me.
Thanks
Dap
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DAP LOUW, PH.D.(Psych.), PH.D.(Crim.)
HEAD: CENTRE FOR BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES
PROFESSOR: DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY
UNIVERSITY OF THE FREE STATE
P.O. BOX 339
BLOEMFONTEIN
9300 SOUTH AFRICA TEL: INTL + 51 + 401-2444 (Work)
436-3423 (Home)
FAX: INTL + 51 + 447-5719
EMAIL: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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