Summary Of Why Looks Are The Last Bastion Of Racial Discrimination

“I say to you quite frankly that the time for racial discrimination is over,” former president of the United States Jimmy Carter stated. Is it really over? Or are we just deceiving ourselves for comfort in our so-called land of the free country? In, “Why Looks Are the Last Bastion of Discrimination,” Deborah L. Rhode talks about the bias upon race, age, sex, and other matters. Rhode can teach readers about prejudice in our country for obesity, religion, and stereotype. The restaurant Hooters is well known that you must look a certain way to be even considered for an application. Part of the necessities for the job is your nose must not touch the wall, indicating your breasts are large and you are easily hired. According to Rhode, “Lawyers for Hooters argued that employees at the restaurant – who wear who wear tank tops and short shorts – are entertainers as much as servers.…” (12). Another example is the clothing store Hollister, which is infamous for having “perfect, beachy people.” The store has a secret drawer where it has two different applications; one states “Pretty Bettys,” and the other,
“Not up to standard.” One of the main measures for Hollister is size; a girl must be 0-4, no bigger than that because any bigger doesn’t look well in their clothes according to the store. According to Rhode, “When the waitress, whose contract required her to keep “an hourglass figure” that, was “height and weight” appropriate,” requested a larger uniform, she was turned down.…” (28) Religion is also a big problem. In biased schools teachers treat them like unique kids and the students treat them like a freak show at a circus. Educators go around their religion, treat them with extra care, and all for the kid won’t feel discriminated. Little do they know they are discriminating them by treating them better than the kids who don’t have a certain type of religion where you must have your hair or hat a certain way. Then the students see this strange behavior from the teacher and call it unfair, so they act upon this biased treatment and exclude the student because he gets treated better. According to Rhode, “Appearance- related bias also exacerbates disadvantages based on gender, race, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion, and class.…” (45). In addition we don’t have to go so far in religion when society’s main religion is being discriminated by schools everywhere around the United States. No longer can we pray or talk about God or Jesus without hearing someone say “you can’t say that.” Why not? I have freedom of religion too; it’s my right. Stereotyping exists everywhere, but the main place where it exists is workplaces known as a “man’s job.” When a young blonde, walks into a store, everyone’s first thought is she’s a promiscuous girl and dumb when in reality she’s a successful businesswoman and doesn’t want a relationship to slow her down.
Women are discriminated because men or other females think we can’t handle what a man can handle, but they are wrong. Women are strong and outspoken; if anything we are stronger than man because we have a superior pain tolerance. Society will never accept that because people at a young age have learned that woman are supposed to be supported by their husbands, and be treated like a porcelain doll because we can’t handle a lot. “Just like racial or gender discrimination, discrimination based on irrelevant physical characteristics reinforces invidious stereotypes.…”
(16). In the end, discrimination whether it’s about age, sex, physical, stereotype, and so on will always be around no matter what. Someone is always going to choose the individual that has the qualities that meet the expectations of someone with higher authority. Nevertheless, we have the choice to fall under society’s pressure to be perfect or the choice to look within the person rather than how we want them to look.