"Isms" and "Phobias"

Within our 7th and 8th grade directed study groups, Peer Team lead discussions about the different forms of prejudices and implicit biases that affect many people in our country and the world. Many of the middle school students were able to share stories about their experiences noticing these prejudices having an impact on themselves, their friends, their relatives, or strangers. Together, they developed their understanding of the unfairness and inaccuracy of these judgements.

Here are the "isms" and "phobias" we learned about and discussed:

Racism: prejudice and/or discrimination against people based on the social construction of  race. People treat others differently based on differences in physical characteristics such as skin color, hair texture, eye shape, and other traits. 

Sexism: prejudice and/or discrimination against people based on their real or percieved sex. Sexism is based on the belief that there is a natural order based on sex. 

Ableism: prejudice and or discrimination against people who have disabilities, whether they are physical, intellectual, or psychiatric. Ableism is prejudice in favor of able-bodied people.

Ageism: Prejudice and/or discrimination against people because of their real or perceived age. Although ageism is often assumed to be bias against older people, members of other groups, such as teens, are also targets of prejudice and/or discriminition based on their age. 

Anti-Semitism: Prejudice and/or discrimination against Jewish people. Anti-semitism can be based on myths that target Jewish religious practices and beliefs, the Jewish state of Israel, or Jewish people as a group. 

Classism: Prejudice and/or discrimination against people because of their real or perceived social and economic status. 

Weightism: Prejudice and/or discrimination against people based on their weight, whether they are overweight or underweight. 

Heterosexism / Homophobia: Prejudice and/or discrimination against people who are or who are perceived to be lesbian, gay, or bisexual. 

Islamophobia: Prejudice and/or discrimination against people who are or who are perceived to be Muslim. Islamophobia is also a fear or dislike of Islamic culture. 

Xenophobia: Prejudice and/or discrimination against anyone or anything that is perceived to be foreign or outside one's own group, nation, or culture. Xenophobia is commonly used to describe negative attitudes towards foreigners and immigrants. 

Religious Bigotry: Prejudice and/or discrimination against people based on their religious beliefs and/or practices. 

The Peer Team acquired these definitions from the Massachusetts Anti-Defamation League.