Why Do We Hate?
A plea for sanity
I was pondering why people can hate others so much. I found myself looking for answers on the Google machine.
When I see outright hate in the eyes of people, it makes me think about what harmed this individual so much? What would have caused this person to hate another human being so much to want to cause pain to another?
How is it possible to hate another person without even knowing the individual?
How is it possible to hate someone so much, when you don't even know their name?
How do we put ourselves in such a state of mind, that we would be willing to end another person's life?
Why do we hate people because they live on the other side of an imaginary line on a map?
Why do we hate people that have a different skin color than our own?
Why do we hate others because of their their gender?
Psychologically speaking the profile of hatred is a mixture of emotions. It is not a base emotion but a secondary one.
Typically, hatred arises from anger combined with humiliation, regret, resentment or a combination of other negative feelings.
The following is an excerpt from an article called “Why We Hate”. Please see the end of the article for the names of the authors involved in the study.
“Hate is based on perceptions of a stable, negative disposition of persons or groups.We hate persons and groups more because of who they are, than because of what they do”.
So I just want to point out that I am not a psychologist but I am a good observer of human interaction.
I worked in retail for 10 years as well as the airlines. That combined with the last 16 years, working in Social Services gives me a pretty decent resume. I have seen many interactions on so many levels.
Oh, did I mention that I also have three girls.
I’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly of people. The quote above strikes true. People are labeled everyday. The hatred of people stems from preconceived ideas of a group, more so than hatred of one individual.
People judge others before they even know them. I’m a middle aged white guy and a nerd. I just so happen to be the color and gender that happens to be favored in this society.
Personally, I believe the statement from Martin Luther King Jr. said it best when referring to his children “that one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character”.
This is a phrase that should be held in the highest esteem. It speaks truth that people en masse should never be judged before learning who they are. We are all human. We are all made of the same stuff. One person is no better than another.
But someone who is different than me, black, brown, gay, female, disabled or otherwise gets hated on in our current society. Name your stereotype and you can definitely find some disparaging thing that people will think when someone is identified from these groups of people.
It is all garbage. To think that these superficial things tell you everything that you need to know. For a thinking, smart human being with a brain in your skull, you should know not to judge someone based on these factors.
People are more than their differences. We should all know this. If you’re a person with any kind of morals or basic decency you should understand these things. Whether you’re a democrat, republican or otherwise, these basics should be obvious.
The words I am saying are not “woke” or the words of a bleeding heart liberal. These should be the words that are stamped on your heart. Being unkind to people based off of false perceptions shows how truly immature you are if you believe it makes you think you are any better than anyone else.
According to the previously referenced article:
“Hate has the goal to eliminate its target”.
Hate has been allowed to be released like a virus due to the racist, xenophobic slop that comes from Donald Trump's mouth. It's probably been below the surface, but our “leader” made it okay to release this plague of evil.
Unfortunately Donald Trump has convinced a significant portion of our nation that this is acceptable behavior. He has managed to make it okay (to them) to eliminate people.
He made it okay to hate. When people hate as the above statement says, the “desire to eliminate the target” opens the road to atrocities.
People that aren't white, straight, male and a bully are nothing to the president. For example, Pete Hegseth, Steven Miller, Russel Vought and Marco Rubio all characterize this oppressive masculinity.
All four of these “men” are white, male, bullies. Each one with a self image that makes them think they are superior. What's that phrase? Oh yeah white supremacy. You know, like nazis.
Below the surface however, they are all scared little boys. This is what makes them hate. They carry a persona of toughness because they could not stand to show sensitivity. It would reveal how truly weak they are.
“An interesting aspect of hatred that makes it more susceptible to become an intergroup sentiment that spreads fast, is the fact that it can increase in the absence of any personal interaction between the hater and members of the hated group. According to Jasini and Fischer (2018), the lack of personal interactions with the targets of one’s hate further diminishes chances of perspective taking from the side of the victim”.
This shows that a lack of personal interaction can numb a person to the harm that they intend to do. When these monsters take people off the street.
When throwing people in concentration camps in the middle of the Florida Everglades, it means something must be missing. Whether it is a lack of interaction or not, it appears that it is easier to hate someone that you don't know.
Personally, I couldn’t imagine doing something so cruel. It is insidious to do such things. It is evil. It is inhumane.
The article I read is a helpful reminder to me to always get to know people. Show people respect and care unless they prove to you that they don't deserve it.
Love you guys,
Erik
(Liberaldad)
Source:
Authors of “Why We Hate”
Agneta Fischer Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Eran Halperin Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, IDC Herzliya, Israel
Daphna Canetti School of Political Science, University of Haifa, Israel
Alba Jasini Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Leuven, Belgium
Great article, thank you.
A couple of years ago I was in Belfast, Northern Ireland and I took a taxi tour of the “Trouble” between republicans, those who want to be a part of the Irish Republic and and unionists, those who want to remain with the UK (contrary to popular belief it is not really about religion). I got into a conversation with a couple of the cabbie who were best friends, one a Catholic and the other a Protestant. They said that the fighting will end when they integrate elementary schools. Right now the schools are about 98% segregated between Catholics and Protestants.
And I thought, yeah, you can’t hate someone you grow up with. You really can’t hate someone you know as a person rather than as part of a group.
Those two cabbies, those best friends, enlightened me to the answer to hate.
Well-written.
I have seen and heard it everywhere in my 62 years.
I have a very difficult time using the word hate toward any human being~ in fact, I never use the word when when speaking about another human or group of human beings.
However, I have seriously teetered on the line of hating Donald Trump and his cronies.
Why? Because of their character (lack thereof), because of what they do.