The bad news, and good news, about racial bias

Staff Editorial,

We were concerned and saddened by a University of Iowa study that showed white test subjects were more likely to mistake a toy or a tool for a gun after viewing images of even very young black boys.

Thank goodness the affliction doesn't have to be permanent.

The UI study dug deeper into earlier studies that have found test subjects were likely to mistake harmless objects as weapons when they were first shown the image of a black man. Researchers wanted to know whether test subjects would make the same mistake even when that face was of a child. They discovered that subjects' implicit biases - judgments or behaviors rooted below conscious awareness - also appeared to affect their perceptions after viewing images of black boys as young as 5 years old.

Stereotypes about black men, boys and criminality are not academic. They can lead to a lifetime of negative interactions, and sometimes fatal mistakes in judgment.

We don't know of anyone who aspires to treat people differently because of their skin tone. Yet, nearly 90 percent of white people in America who take Implicit Association tests like those offered by Harvard University (implicit.harvard.edu) discover they have an inherent preference for those who are most like themselves, and some level of bias against those who aren't.

Some researchers believe the tendency is a leftover from an age when being able to instantly recognize a member of one's own tribe could be a matter of life and death. These unconscious racial and gender biases often fly in the face of people's conscious feelings and attitudes. They silently, consistently have worked against the American ideal of equality.

But they aren't carved in stone.

We can outsmart implicit bias in the same ways we outsmart other prehistoric habits, like our physical body's tendency to store sugar and fat to survive lean seasons.

Embracing the educational opportunities available during Black History Month can be as effective in fighting bias as regular trips to the gym are in the battle of the bulge.

Seeking deeper personal connections with people of varying races also shifts our perspective, and is especially important for our youth.

Widespread, significant changes won't happen in a day or be easy, but they are well within our reach. Do it to enrich your own life and perspective. Do it to strengthen your community.

Do it for a little 5-year-old boy.

' Gazette editorials reflect the consensus opinion of The Gazette Editorial Board. Share your comments and ideas with us: (319) 398-8469; editorial@thegazette.com