Prejudice, fears passed from parent to child

The Gazette printed two articles of interest on May 23. While only one of the articles is viewed as child abuse, the other article by Eugene Robinson, to me, also represents a form of child abuse - but has nothing to do with sexual or physical mistreatment but rather mental abuse. Granted, both sexual and physical abuses also affect people's minds - how they react to that abuse at the time and later on in life.

Whether parents/adults actively seek to condition their offspring with their prejudices, their parenting does impact/affect how their children will feel toward others. And this child abuse not only affects those kids but often can then impact an entire group/race. I feel that some parents seemingly pass along their prejudices/biases toward groups, such as African-Americans. These fears/prejudices can be directed against anyone who is unlike them and it can, and too often is, passed along intentionally/unintentionally, and my greatest concern is the mainstream media rarely presents its potentially dangerous consequences.

The disconnect between races is often instilled at a very young age and if not checked can then only further fuel fears/hatred between races.

We still have time. How will you react?

Thomas Sass

Iowa City