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Xenophobia in America

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Xenophobia in America
Alfredo Grimaldo
HU-101-WL1
10-20-10

Xenophobia

There are many factors that need to be observed to determine what causes people to experience xenophobia. Xenophobia is defined as a condition where people suffer irrational fear of strangers or foreigners. The symptoms of people that suffered from this condition are very real and can range from feeling nauseated or excessive sweating to dry mouth, heart palpitations, a fear of dying, and anxiety attacks. Nevertheless, what exactly causes people to experience from Xenophobia?

On his article regarding Xenophobia, Massino Pegliucci takes a scientifically approach describing xenophobia as a condition that will be very difficult to eradicate. He believes that humans have a natural tendency of been hostile towards outsiders, perhaps due to a survival instinct. Furthermore, he touches on the important role that culture plays in the way people behave. Massino finds a combination of biological and cultural forces to be responsible as the primary trigger to the fear of strangers.

Culture has an enormous effect on the way people view other people. People tend to have a mentality of seeking refuge among those that makes them feel secure. The United States for example, is perhaps the country that posses the largest cultural diversity in the world. Nevertheless, we don’t see all this cultures intermixing. Cities with large cultural diversities are divided among cultures. Where China town ends the Greek town begins and Where the Mexican town starts the African American ends and so on. Cultures don’t intermix, providing a save net for individual to feel secure from the threat that outsider might represent. This is the reason that leads me to believe that people have a tendency to feel insecure or threaten in the presence of outsiders or other cultures. Concurring with Massino’s idea that culture is a strong aspect in determining the cause of xenophobia.

The United States has a strong history of xenophobia. In the

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