Why is it okay to positively label a group of people but not okay to negatively label them?

Question

I've often wondered this. You can say an entire group of people (whether ethnic or religious or whatever) are kind and friendly, or business savvy, or very generous and so on. These may be kind things to say, but they are no less stereotypical than saying negative things about them. Yet people only complain once you say negative things.

For instance nobody would bat an eyelash at me if I said black people are very festive or athletic. But if I said black people are very loud an obnoxious, people would try to throw bricks at me. Yet those two statements are no less stereotypical than the other. But it's only when you make a negative label people say it's wrong. In order to be consistent with that logic, it should also be wrong to stereotype and label people even if you were to say good things. So why the one-sidedness and inconsistency?

WordsofWisdom · Answer

Generalizations are most always inappropriate and inaccurate --even if they are positive and or negative.

Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.

Eleanor Roosevelt

? · Answer

Because of the phrase, "if you do not have something nice to say, better to not say it at all". This is why.

Ksenia · Answer

actually, saying that black people are "good at basketball" is just as offensive...

Summertime · Answer

Because people obviously don't like it. And that's a shame. That's pacifying at its worst.

Anonymous · Answer

Because everyone likes feeling complimented , no matter how inconsistent and one sided it is. If you say someone is bad , it is counted as an insult . But if its something on black and white representing every single one of them . Then they will have no rebute. But remember stereotypes derive from a popular image of a show, or the majority of a population but not all.

Trending News

Why is it okay to positively label a group of people but not okay to negatively label them?

5 Answers