Prejudice

What a strange thing prejudice is. Why do we create it? Is it because we are frightened of people with different ideas to ours and who are different from us?

Religion seems to create an enormous amount of prejudice. My son has been diagonsed with cancer and was quite pleased when religious people told him they would pray for him. He would say "any help is welcome!" although he is not necessaryily a believer. He just recognised that they wanted to show they cared and it was their way of showing that.

Race is another creator of prejudice. I know that when the West Indians came over after the war we needed them but there was prejudice - the notices in the windows of rooms to let was "No coloureds". Why was that? Probably because at that time they looked very strange to us "whites" and were friendlier and noisier than "us".

However when I was young (I am 75)I wanted a brown doll! Why because I thought they were pretty! I also loved a golly wog! Now we are not "allowed" to "love" these things!

To describe a brown colour I liked I said "nigger" brown. My grandchildren were horrified!!! Needless to say I would never repeat that! I was not thinking of people when I said it but the grandchildren took it that I was prejudiced!