DISCRIMINATION : UNDERSTANDING THROUGH EXPERIENCE
INTRODUCTION
Every life experience whether we like it or not, has the potential to teach us something. Very often our biggest lessons are learned from unexpected, stressful and painful experiences. Experience is not just what happens to us but also what we make of what happens to us.
Great variations exist in what we may learn from painful experiences. Adolf Hitler for example was bullied as a child and discriminated against as an adult. His response was the genocide of 6 million Jews, the ultimate act of discrimination. Nelson Mandela on the other hand suffered a lifetime of discrimination, 27 years of which were in prison and yet was able to demonstrate almost Christlike forgiveness in his role as the South African President. The fact that one man learnt to hate and the other learnt to forgive and that both models then served as lessons for millions of others, is a potent reminder of the complexity and mystery of life.
LEARNING THROUGH EXPERIENCE
While we learn quite naturally and holistically from life experiences there is also a need to acquire specific skills and learnings in order to survive and thrive. This then is the role of both our informal learning and our formal education and training. The Cogmotic approach to learning and education is based on natural holistic principles and practices. Cogmotics is founded on the principle that if a picture is worth a thousand words, a holistic experience is worth a thousand pictures.
The decision to utilise the discrimination learningshop with any group is never an easy one because of the potential pain, hurt, stress and frustration which it may cause in the short term. For me it is a conscious choice and a calculated risk which I am fully prepared to take and accept simply because THE LARGE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WHO GO THROUGH THE EXPERIENCE BELIEVE AS I DO, THAT THE MEANS IN THIS CASE JUSTIFIES THE END.
The discrimination lesson or exercise has a 30-year history which started with an American primary school teacher Jane Elliott in the 1960’s. Her blue/brown-eyed exercise in discrimination has become world famous and has received wide support from educationists, psychologists, psychiatrists and human rights activists. A best selling training video “The eye of the storm” has and continues to be used in schools, churches, organisations and institutions throughout the world by people who are concerned about the devastating effects of prejudice and discrimination. Not all these people have the skills and confidence to create an actual experience of discrimination and consequently teach their lesson through group discussions, role plays and an analysis of the video. While this approach does heighten people’s awareness and cognitive understanding it does little or nothing at the emotional, physical, social and spiritual levels.
THE DISCRIMINATION LESSON IN SOUTH AFRICA
After seeing the video in 1990 I designed with the help of Johan Greeff a clinical psychologist, a holistic experience of discrimination which by all accounts was the first of its kind to be used in the South African apartheid era. The results we achieved were significant and very soon other facilitators began to use the exercise.
Two major organisations, The South African Defence Force and Old Mutual, used the exercise extensively for a number of years. Lance Bloch, a Defence Force clinical psychologist who later became one of my associates received the prestigious FOYSA and TOYP awards, the latter being presented by President Mandela himself for his work on diversity. A major part of his diversity workshops involved the discrimination exercise.
Susan Nel, a clinical psychologist from Old Mutual who is also one of my associates designed with colleagues a very successful discrimination experience called “Eye to Eye”. Many thousands of Old Mutual staff went through the experience over a 3 year period. Although I have no scientific evidence to substantiate it I believe that the many discrimination workshops conducted in South Africa between 1990 and 1994 contributed at some level to the almost miraculous peaceful elections in 1994.
What there is little doubt about however is the fact that with a 50-year history of constitutionalised racial discrimination many millions of South Africans who passively by accepting apartheid or actively by practising it, perpetuated a system riddled with prejudice and discrimination. Clearly there is a pressing need for these people and particularly White South Africans, to be sensitised to and inoculated against the devastating forms of discrimination in its many blatant and subtle variations and manifestations.
COGMOTIC DISCRIMINATION LEARNINGSHOP
Since the first discrimination exercise in 1990 we have learnt a great deal on how to structure, conduct and debrief what is unquestionably a profound and emotionally charged experience. Although our presentations and methods have changed and evolved over time one thing has remained constant namely our SPIRIT OF INTENT. Our objectives are to create a realistic short term, holistic experience of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination which will provide highly relevant personal insights into :
à Unconscious habitual stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination behaviours.
à How easily and quickly group divisions and separations can be created, intensified and accepted.
à The individual and collective wounds and scars of different types of discrimination.
à How stereotypes, traditions, ideologies and groupings give rise to prejudice, biases and discrimination.
à Techniques that can be used to break the insidious and vicious prejudice/discrimination cycle.
à Fostering kindness, fairness, compassion and empathy.
à Managing conflict, resentment and anger.
à Accepting and honouring diversity.
There can be little doubt that the many challenges facing the people of South Africa will be significantly lightened if we can both heal the hurts of the past and eradicate current discriminatory practices based on differences in race, sex, class, age, religion, culture and many more. As Desmond Tutu has observed without memory there is no healing and without forgiveness there is not future. It is also well to remember that while peace may be made by Governments it must be lived by the people. To do this it must be in the hearts and minds of the people so that it can capture the imagination. Valuing and nurturing diversity in South Africa constitutes what we consider to be a critically important issue. When all is said and done this document is what we have to say and our learningshop is what we do in order to eradicate discrimination and value diversity – this then is the spirit of our intent.