Different societies form their own distinct cultures and, unfortunately, these cultures have often had difficulty accepting each other’s ideas and values. This difficulty resulted in racism and stereotypes. People have attempted to fight these concepts throughout history and have only been successful to a degree. We have made progress in understanding how wrong these things are and laws have been made to prevent them but they are far from being eradicated.

Stereotypes are very present in the media. For example, when characters are created for shows or movies, they often are based on stereotypes because it is easier for the audience to understand the characters. Racism is often used as a form of comedy. Writers will use racist and offensive remarks or ideas to get attention and to get people to laugh. In both of these cases, the intention is harmless. However, they can have harmful impacts as audiences are repeatedly exposed to racism and stereotypes. People may start to believe the things they are seeing and hearing even if they aren’t meant to. In addition, because cultures have different ideas and values, things that are meant as harmless may be interpreted as harmful.

David Henry Hwang’s play Chinglish, touches on this idea of misinterpretations between cultures. It shows off how Asians and Americans have difficulty understanding each other at times. The play contains no Asian-American characters because it wants to represent the relationship, or lack of relationship, between the two separate cultures.

The best way to learn about new cultures and traditions is to interact with them, which is why its important for each person to know where they came from. The city of New York is a great example. Everyday, New Yorkers are exposed to so many different people. We hear different languages on the subway, eat cultural foods in Manhattan, and watch cultural performances, such as Chinglish.

My high school was very diverse so I had the opportunity to learn about different people. One of my best friends was Chilean, so I learned a lot about his heritage when I went to his house. I ate Chilean food and saw Chilean works of art that his mother had. I learned a lot more about his culture than I would have if I had read about it in a book. Another one of my good friends was Indian, so going to her house taught me a lot about Indian culture.

Another good way to learn about different cultures is visiting all the different museuums that New York City has to offer. Some that come to mind are the Museum of the American Indian, and the Jewish Museum.

One problem that occurs when people are exposed to new cultures is stereotyping. Stereotyping is applying one person’s characteristics and behavior to a whole group. Stereotypes can be extremely hurtful. One way to prevent stereotypes is to meet many different people from many different cultures and learn about them.

Being familiar with different cultures wil not only make you a smarter individual, but will aslo help you succeed. People in the business world value workers who can speak several languages and who are familiar with foreign customs. We should all strive to be more open minded and learn more about cultures that we are not familiar with.

As Andre Malraux once stated, “culture is the sum of all the forms of art, or love and of thought…” The world consists of a multitude of diverse and unique variations of culture, ethnicity, and race. As society continues to advance and ways of life become more complex, people get pulled into cultures that interest them the most. In today’s time, anybody can be anyone if someone feels connected to a certain culture or religion. One does not need to be born into a certain culture but rather find comfort and acceptance surrounded by people who have similar ideologies. David Henry Hwang, a famous playwright, adds on how our genes or race no longer dictate how we decide to live out our lives.

In the artistic realm, multiculturalism has influenced the way famous playwrights and producers create their masterpieces. In order to perfectly portray a particular culture or type of person, numerous plays hone in on aesthetics and representation. For example, an Irish play such as Dancing At Lughnasa, relies on the original Irish cast to manufacture a pristine and flawless performance for the world to see. When replaced by American actors, the beauty and essence of the piece of art is tainted and lost. Such changes can cause cultural misinterpretations and confusion.

In David Henry Hwang’s play, “Chinglish”, translations of mistranslations of an American businessman seeking success in China are creatively portrayed. The work of art centers on common cultural misinterpretations and the obstacles faced when one doesn’t speak the language of a foreign place. In his play, Hwang hopes to portray the misunderstandings between ethnicities and the importance of bringing the American and Chinese cultures together. Through plays, musicals, and other works of art, race, ethnicity and culture are interpreted or misinterpreted in various ways. But with a simple knowledge base and understanding, society can become more well-rounded and multifaceted.

Throughout history there have been many movements aimed at bringing about social reform and none of them have been more successful than the civil rights movement which focuses on attaining equality for people of all races and differences in culture. From the time of slavery in America people have fought at attaining equal rights for all and have pursued the equal treatment for all different kinds of people.

Growing up, one of my favorite movies was “Remember the Titans,” which portrays the struggle to create a society with less social tension between people of different races. It is the story of a school football team in the south, which must combine both white and African American players. At first, there was a lot of tension between the players on the team. They would only stick to the people of the same race and wouldn’t even communicate with those who were not like them. However, as the story progresses you can truly see the determination of the players to create a team where there was no such concept as racial tension. The players started to come together as one and started to create an environment of love and acceptance of people of different races. By the end of the movie these players not only changed their school but eventually changed their community as well.

I believe that, even though we may not know it, there is still a lot of racial discrimination that exists in our society today. Even if someone makes a little joke regarding a person of a different race or mentions a stereotypical remark  he can be considered to be discriminating towards people who are different from himself. Even the type of neighborhoods that we live in portray a sense of racial segregation that was around during the 1960s. Today, many people live in communities which consist of people who are similar to themselves. Since these people share similar customs to themselves they feel comfortable being around them and therefore cling to one another. I believe that there would be less racial discrimination in the world if we lived in mixed communities where we can share our cultures with others, and learn a little about them as well. By doing this we can learn to appreciate people of different cultures for who they truly are.

Racism always existed from the times when people enslaved one another. It grew from a means of differentiation into a means of generalization. Racism categorized people based on their physical features and common culture. But now it has evolved into a method in which people group negatively associate a group of people with bad habits or traits.

When someone sees racist’s comments being spread, I just see more ignorance. People are commonly associating Asians with social inadequacy and academic vigor. “If he is Asian, he must be…” Even if some stereotypes my night were offensive by itself, Generalizing a race, or group is. It is not politically correct, since people are assuming facts and applying preconceived notions to a person prior to their meeting. Stereotypes do not define a person

Racism through stereotyping is prevalent in mainstream media as well. For some reason, society finds it acceptable to have crude humor in movies and tv shows, yet when it is discussed among casual conversation. Racist comments become taboo. Also what allows one race from discriminating on its own? How is that any less wrong than any other race discriminating him or her? Discrimination is wrong on all levels. It should not be tolerated.

In a society that is trained to make guesses and jump to conclusions, I automatically assumed that David Henry Hwang’s Chinglish was about immigrants with broken English. It is nothing like it’s title. The production is one-quarter in mandarin. It breaks any preconceived ideas about the Chinese. His production costs is about $3.5 million to which is high and especially of a commercial. It’s risky bet on something that may be lucrative.  Hwang’s production contradicts any assumptions that one might arrive at about plays performed in a foreign language.

Mankind doesn’t look outward for opportunities to aid the races in need. Rather, man prefers to degrade and laugh at others and repeat such a vicious cycle of discrimination that needlessly exists.

Racism is everywhere and it’s usually hard to deal with. Stereotypes and racial slurs are thrown around casually everyday; how does one respond to them?  These days, people tend to make attempts at being humorous by saying racial jokes that actually offend the people the joke is aimed at. Also, a certain person might feel the right to treat another person of a certain race a specific way because of stereotypes. This sense of superiority over another race is not one that should be followed.

Stereotypes may be funny at first but begin to get annoying after a while. The typical “Asians are good at math” and “Ching chong” thing aimed at Asians is something I really hate. You can’t assume a person is good at something just because of his or her race; I have a Chinese friend who is horrible at math and gets offended when someone asks her for help in math. And for someone to degrade the Chinese language into two words digests me. This is the language of my ancestors and for it to be made a joke out of makes me shake my head at mankind.

We may look different and have different cultures but in the end, we are all people and should be treated equally and respected. Chinatown is a neighborhood rich in culture and history. There is a park near Canal Street where senior citizens go to enjoy their time, playing music and putting on a show for others. This happens almost every Sunday and have been so for the past couple of years. Lately, young, wealthy people of non-Asian descent have been moving into the neighborhood and can’t stand this “noise” and file noise complaints against these senior citizens, resulting in their expulsion from the park. These newcomers need to respect the rich culture that is Chinatown and start by learning about the culture, not abolishing it.

Racism is a hard thing to get past. After all those years of leaders attempting to make the world a better, more equal place, the separation is still evident. Ignorant people need to get rid of these strict lines and immerse themselves in new cultures to get a better understanding of the world. Knowledge ends ignorance.