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Our Magazines
Stereotypes (52 found)
When she enters 7th grade as the only black student in her class, Desiree is thrown into confusion about her racial identity. (full text)
Dwan is teased by fellow blacks for “acting white” and wonders why people can’t be more open-minded. (full text)
As a Muslim teen who dresses traditionally, Sara becomes an object of attention after 9/11 and gets harassed on the street. (full text)
Xavier is prejudiced against homosexuals and therefore terrified when he finds himself attracted to men. (full text)
When George, who is Chinese, moves to the Bronx, he is frequently taunted by black kids. But after a black youth befriends and defends him, George moves beyond his stereotypes. (full text)
Jamal speaks standard English, can’t dance, and prefers baseball to basketball. Does this mean he’s less black than his peers? (full text)
Mohamad has three strikes against him when he goes through airport customs: he's young, he carries a Lebanese passport, and he's a Shiite Muslim.
Sandra’s friends have lots of stereotypes about lesbians—but Sandra’s gay sister proves them wrong. (full text)
Edwidge describes the bewilderment, culture shock, and stereotypes she faces on arriving in the U.S. from Haiti at 12. She will later credit this essay with helping to inspire her novel "Breath, Eyes, Memory," which becomes a New York Times bestseller. (full text)
After being mugged by two black boys, Chantal—who is African-American, herself—starts to think that racial profiling is justified if personal safety is at stake.
When Irving realizes that his 4th grade teacher has been criticizing and isolating him because he is dark-skinned, he develops a plan to prove that skin color is not an obstacle for learning.
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Evin's parents warn him to avoid certain neighborhoods and he develops a wariness toward anyone from the "ghetto." It's not until he befriends kids from hood that he learns to separate "bad neighborhoods" from the people who live there.
Marsha never really thinks about being Haitian, until one day in class when she is made painfully aware of some of her classmates’ misconceptions.
As a white boy in a black neighborhood, Fred had to “act ghetto” to fit in. But now that he’s growing up, he wants to change his ways.
Lily tries dressing in different styles—goth, girly, hip-hop, and her own normal look—to see how people react.
Aissata, an immigrant from Senegal, is stunned by her classmates’ ignorance about Africa.
Stephanie resents being followed in stores because she’s young, black, and stereotyped as a shoplifter.
As a Muslim youth, Abanty has become self-conscious and fearful after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. She worries that she and her family will be the targets of revenge. (full text)
As a U.S. citizen living in Germany, Miranda is torn between sympathy for the widespread anti-Americanism she encounters and defending her country against simplistic stereotypes.
Janill, who is Ecuadorian, is bothered when people assume she’s Puerto Rican or Dominican.
Jordan feels pigeonholed by the “model minority” stereotype, which says that he should work hard, get good grades, and never cause any trouble.
Keniel is ashamed about being in foster care. But after revealing his situation to a teacher, he begins to shed his negative self-image.
When people find out Giselle is in foster care, they either assume she did something wrong, should look a certain way, or that she needs their pity. But Giselle refuses to be labeled and she debunks myths about foster youth.
Norman wants the finer things in life, and he wants to get them through hard work and education, not by selling drugs.
Fabiola has always feared “the projects.” But when she visits one, it’s not what she expects.
At 14, Oni decides she no longer wants to be isolated from the hearing world and transfers to a public high school.
When Rance and his friends decide to talk to the cops who are trailing them instead of running away, they get frisked and verbally abused.
A wheelchair won’t stop Michelle from playing basketball—or beating the boys.
When Latoya, who is black, becomes friends with a Puerto Rican girl, she must confront her attitudes toward people who are “different.”
A classmate in a wheelchair helps Esther confront her prejudices about the disabled.
Rance makes some negative assumptions about the beautiful girl he sees hanging out with the neighborhood players. But when he finally talks to her, he sees that he’s misjudged her.
Lenny, curious about stereotypes associated with foster kids, interviews six teens without revealing he's in the system. Some think foster youth are troublemakers and deserve pity, others are more open-minded. With witty asides to the reader, Lenny reacts to their comments.
Lenny meets a girl he likes, but is ashamed to tell her he lives in a group home. When she finds out the truth, the relationship ends. Lenny meets a new girl who doesn't care he's in foster care, but he still hides his identity from others.
A black teen helps Priscilla, who’s Asian, recognize her own stereotypes and get beyond them.
Victoria explores her conflicted experiences as an “American Born Chinese.”
As a new hospital intern, Sheela is afraid she won’t connect with the elderly patients. But she eventually reaches out to them, breaks their isolation, and benefits as much as they do.
When she goes to see the film "The House of the Spirits," based on the novel by Chilean author Isabel Allende, Jessica is offended that none of the leading roles are played by Latinos.
Akia talks to abstinent teens about how and why they’ve made the decision to remain virgins.
Shaniqua is teased at school for “acting white” because she gets good grades and has a big vocabulary.
Carlford interviews gay and lesbian foster youth. They report widespread homophobia and mistreatment.
Slade answers common questions sighted people ask him, such as how he knows where he’s going and whether blind people have fun.
In the wake of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, Mohamad documents some of the ways the news media vilify Arabs, and the discrimination and violence that often result.
While working at a New York supermarket, Tony is told to follow black customers around the store, even though most of the shoplifters are white.
After getting mugged by a group of Hispanic teens, Kenneth begins to hate and fear all Hispanics. Love makes him reconsider.
Julieta Velazquez challenges common stereotypes about immigrants, questions the contention that immigrants are taking jobs from American citizens, and asks who really profits from illegal immigration. (full text)
Marcus, a foster youth, is hurt by the way his peers associate bad behavior with being in foster care. But when he overhears a girl gossiping maliciously about a foster child in her family, it's the "normal kid" who's acting like a "problem child." (full text)
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