Ways to Deal With People Stereotyping You During Your Trip
It’s inevitable for people to form opinions about other cultures and races. Some of them are unfavorable and place people in a box. If you travel to another country and the locals judge you based on a stereotype, it can be painful. These are some ways to deal with bad stereotypes during your trip.
Be polite
When people judge you based on your country of origin or the color of your skin, you’re not the one with a problem. The other person is at fault for judging you. There’s nothing for you to explain. You should stay calm and try your best to ignore. Don’t fight back and be enraged by the stereotype. It’s not going to end well. Remember that you’re in a different country, and you have to remain gracious with the host.
Don’t judge these people
If these people try to judge you, your instinct might tell you to do the same. However, you should hold your judgment. They might not be nice to you, but they are not representative of the entire race or group of people. It’s unfair to those whom you are yet to meet if you already from judgment of them. It also doesn’t make a difference from people who make stereotypes about your race. Try your best to understand them and stay positive.
Enjoy your trip
Just because some people ask you about infuriating things doesn’t mean your trip is over. You can still enjoy even if there are negative ideas about your country of origin. Besides, you didn’t go there to prove that the stereotypes are right or wrong. You visited another country to relax and have fun. Nothing should stop you from achieving your goal. If you let them get the best of you, you will waste your opportunity to have fun during your trip.
Discover new things
Your impression of the locals might be negative because of their judgment, but you will be surprised to know more about them. If you travel the country, you will realize that there are too many good things to say about it. If you allowed yourself to make negative judgments, you will ruin the adventure. You will also prevent yourself from seeing the good side of the country that you visited.
Decide if you wish to pursue the trip
If you think that you’re no longer safe because of people judging you, it might be time to consider leaving. There’s no point in staying if you don’t feel good anymore. You can also warn your friends not to visit if the experience isn’t recommendable at all. Make sure you give the country another chance instead of judging how bad it is.
Hopefully, you won’t feel discrimination and judgment during your trip. If you do, you can learn from your experience and enjoy your next trip. You could also research more about the country to prevent this experience from happening again. You don’t deserve it, and no one else does.
Photo Attribution:
1st and featured image from https://i1.wp.com/www.redpillrebellion.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/philippines-stereotypes-8-tourists.jpg?resize=625%2C417&ssl=1
2nd image from https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_to_beat_stereotypes_by_seeing_people_as_individuals