Although African Americans only make up 30% of the total population of the United States, they make up 60% of those in prison! That's a huge difference! What is the reason behind this? The obvious answer is racism. Maybe it's because police officers are racist and more suspicious of African Americans, but then again, maybe it's because African Americans commit more crimes. Even if they do, it is highly likely that this criminal attitude will be sparked when they are treated unfairly and discriminated against. Regardless, racism is about creating unfair differences between people of different races. In our minds, what causes racism is prejudice. Prejudice is a negative thought that exists in our mind that causes us to treat different people differently. But why do prejudices exist in the world? What is the reason for our inexplicable tendency to differentiate between others? Some people say that prejudice is part of human nature. Others think we learn it from our elders. Either could be true, as there are various controversial beliefs about why prejudice exists in the world. An interesting theory is that prejudice is an emotional reaction that is triggered in our brains whenever we encounter unfamiliar people, who have different physical characteristics, different personalities and/or different beliefs. In fact, these unknown people scare us and we start treating them differently to make sure that they cannot matter to us. Another possible reason for prejudice could be negative upbringing towards others, direct or indirect. An example of the direct type would be if you are deliberately taught to avoid certain people who discriminate...... middle of paper ......this. Even though there was nothing wrong with this movement, it failed to get rid of prejudices. In short, it would be difficult to free oneself from the grip of prejudice. Overall, bias is a pretty controversial topic. Some continue to suggest ideas on how to control it, others give up on it as impossible to abolish, but many are not even aware of the problems it poses to modern society. The best and most effective way to get rid of prejudice is to educate people about it. When everyone is convinced that prejudice is bad, there will be no one left to be prejudiced. If we do our best, we will certainly succeed in destroying prejudice, even if it is an acquired trait. Prejudice is like walking; we learn both as we grow up. But that doesn't mean we can't get rid of it. I hope you now have a better understanding of the problems of prejudice in the world..