“Treat the small as great and the few as many. Requite enmity with character.” – Daodejing 63

Nature versus nurture – this debate has raged since time immemorial. I tend to ascribe more to nature than to nurture, but nurture reigns supreme in one particularly ugly aspect: bigotry. 

At its core, bigotry is a fear of the unknown and unfamiliar. Eons ago, unfounded paranoia may have enabled a species to survive, but humanity has long outgrown this trait. Sapience, compassion, empathy – these are what enable a species not just to survive, but to truly thrive. 

Bigotry is a grotesque outgrowth of this ancient survival instinct, one that our modern world must move past. And, at least during the earliest years of one’s life, this toxic trait has been abandoned. 

Now it would be silly to claim that no one is born bigoted, but the vast majority of bigots were taught this toxic trait. Bad dogs are not born, only made. The same applies to humanity. 

Humans are generally naturally curious creatures. On the surface, this may seem antithetical to survival, but a cautious curiosity allows life to surpass the bounds imposed upon it by the cold, unfeeling laws of nature. 

Curiosity naturally begets education, and education begets understanding, compassion, and ultimately empathy. This is why curiosity is one of the three core pillars of my belief system – it is absolutely crucial to progress. 

While some are more curious than others, it is safe to say that nearly every human is born with a vast capacity to learn and to question. Unfortunately, many are born to those who do not value curiosity and education, or even disparage it in order to impose a strict ruleset of their own. 

So, as a naturally curious child grows up, the unlucky ones are taught by example that curiosity has little use, that the world is simple, and that difference is dangerous. The fortunate ones are taught, both by example and often in words, that curiosity is a virtue, that the world is beautifully complex, and that difference is what helps us to thrive and progress together. 

In the United States, there is a common refrain among conservatives that teenagers are indoctrinated by liberal professors. This simply is not true. Good professors facilitate critical thinking and curiosity, which causes a person to question the constructs they held so dearly. A sheltered teenager also meets a wide variety of people they never knew could exist, and they see these people not as the crude villains somewhere outside of their rigid worldview, but as the beautiful people they are. 

Curiosity leads to more than education and understanding – it leads to questioning. And to anyone obsessed with maintaining power and control, this is exceedingly dangerous. This is why religion has doctrine. This is why political movements built on this fundamental misunderstanding of the world tend to become so extreme. This is why abusive parents raise obedient children. 

In a twisted way, most bigots begin as victims of this system. This in no way excuses their behavior or any harm they have caused, but it is key to a deeper understanding of what went wrong. 

I still struggle with the idea that anyone can unlearn this behavior. After a certain point, this simplistic, fear-based worldview is so ingrained that it has what is left of the person in a stranglehold. At the same time, there are many who are taught by example that curiosity is unnecessary, but who still champion it despite the conditions of their youth. 

To me, this indicates that curiosity is the default. Even in these harsh and abusive conditions, children being brought up to be obedient and unquestioning often sense that something is deeply wrong. Bigotry, on the other hand, nearly always has a source external to the person. 

I may not be a parent yet, but I know that the best way a parent can answer a curious child’s question is to explain it – both honestly and in a way that they can understand and build upon later. And this extends to rules, too, for the most fundamental parts of a child’s worldview are formed around the rules by which they are bound. Certainly they have a place in rare situations, but possibly the four worst words a parent can utter are, “because I said so.”

By and large, bigotry is taught. Curiosity is natural. Empathy is natural. To live life as a bigot is not just harmful to others, but it is a squandering of one’s own life and potential.