10 An Introduction to Clearer ThinkingIf you read a dictionary you will find xenophobia defined as
“fear, distrust, or hatred of foreigners.” Ethnocentrism is defined
as a feeling of “superiority of one’s own ethnic group.” A fuller
understanding of these two terms could very well prevent a
person from becoming a xenophobe or ethnocentric according to
the dictionary definition.
Ethnocentrism begins with a feeling of comfort or security
that one gets, quite naturally, in familiar surroundings or with
people like oneself. Xenophobia begins with a fear of the
unfamiliar, a very natural feeling. These feelings however, can
be the beginning of some deep-seated prejudices.
If one is comfortable and secure with those like himself, it is
easy to assume that the feeling of well-being is the product of
superior surroundings (nationalism) or people (ethnic or racial
superiority). If one is uncomfortable with strange surroundings
or people it is easy to assume that the feeling is based on some
valid premise. Thus, the strange surrounding becomes the habi
tat of an enemy and the strange person somehow seems inferior.
Two examples should help to illustrate this point.
Consider a young man out for a walk in the city late one
afternoon. He starts out whistling a tune; with a spirited gait he
walks along enjoying the scenery. As it begins to grow dark, he
finds himself in a part of town which is unfamiliar to him and
very different from his own neighborhood. His step slows, his
whistle stops, and he begins to notice more and more differences
in the makeup of this part of town. He notices, directly ahead of
him, a large group of men standing on the sidewalk in front of a
store. They are dressed in a very different style, they are of a
different color, and they are speaking a language he cannot
understand. As he approaches they pause in their animated
conversation, and as he passes, they break out into hysterical
laughter. The hair on the back of his neck bristles, he becomes
nervous and wonders, “Oh my God! Why are they laughing... at
me?” If he puts aside this very natural reaction and continues his
walk—fine. If, however, he begins to swear under his breath
about those “no good foreigners, those peons, how dare those
animals laugh at me—they should be shipped back to where they
came from,” then he’s a xenophobe.
Similarly, ethnocentrism begins as a feeling of comfort or
security with those like oneself. Consider a young lady who is