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In response to recommendations of the Task Force on Racial and Ethnic Fairness in the Criminal Justice System, the Utah State Bar is undertaking a program of instruction on
cultural competency. This training will first be offered to leadership in the Bar and then, after some experience, may be offered to all members of the Bar.
Cultural competency training is to help us be familiar with the other cultures around us so that they won’t seem strange or unusual. By becoming familiar, we feel more at ease
and are able to remove the lines we might draw as barriers. Cultural competency can also help us understand the background reasons behind persistent distinctions and
discriminations which have no foundation in reality. Through self-examination and an increase in familiarity, we can overcome bias and prejudice.
Unfamiliarity and bias may tragically come out when we are put to the test. Police officers may be quicker to pull a gun when the kid reaching for his wallet is of a different
race or from an unfamiliar background. As lawyers we may be less able to provide an effective defense to someone whom we just don't understand. As employers, we may be less
willing to work with someone who has a background different than our own, though it may be equally or even more enriching. If we remove barriers and overcome bias and
prejudice, we can ensure that our decisions, in a quick moment, will be rationally and realistically based.
I moved from Corvallis, Oregon, to the suburbs of Chicago in June 1966. On July 10, the Freedom Sunday Rally at Soldier Field launched the drive to make Chicago an open city
for housing. On July 12 -14, racial rioting on Chicago's West Side resulted in two deaths and widespread destruction. Three weeks later on August 5, angry Whites attacked a
civil rights march through Chicago's southwest side.
The transition from Oregon to Illinois was very unsettling for me. For the first time, I saw that some people hated people of different racial and ethnic background. This
hatred seemed strange.
Prejudice is rooted in drawing dividing lines between ourselves and others. The need for these lines arises out of a feeling that there is scarcity-not enough for everyone-and
out of fear. We create a sense of "otherness" to draw distinctions between ourselves and those, whom we determine, by drawing a line, are not like us. The lines are
self-justifiction for our disparate treatment. I have seen these lines drawn in neighborhoods, schools, workplaces, families, clubs and courts. I have seen lines drawn across
many criteria, including religion, gender, age, ethnicity, race, speaking style and accent, sexual orientation, scholastic background, profession, economic status, length of
time in the community, birthplace, and language. All of these distinctions, based on some criterion other than merit, create the "desired" barrier between us and
others. The barrier justifies treatment that would otherwise be unfair. Our ethics end on our side of the line. Rather than drawing a circle, which is inclusive, we draw lines
to exclude and create a difference.
My prejudice usually springs from unfamiliarity. I heard someone tell of a bumper sticker which reads, "Prejudice rarely survives experience." That same evening, I
heard someone say that the meaning of the word "hate" in Korean is "lacking information." When we experience the humanness of another person we find
something in common with that person. Familiarity creates understanding that bridges any line that may have been drawn. We realize the line was artificial.
We all have bias and prejudice. We are biased toward the familiar; prejudiced against the unfamiliar. This applies to our selections of vacation spots, working environment,
residential neighborhoods and grocery store purchases. We can, by experience, overcome prejudice. Fear, or complacency, can prevent us from getting to know places, things or
people.
I am learning to watch my thought and behavior patterns which create a sense of distinction. In casual moments, when I sense myself drawn to one person rather than another, I
ask why and often try to bridge the barrier which was threatening to separate me by getting to know the person who seemed a less likely friend.
This effort of the Bar to teach cultural competency will help us alter the subtle, inherent, latent, non-merit based borders that lead us to treat people differently. We can
experience and learn to focus on the commonality of people. Just as we learn to do so many other things, we can also learn to see people in a different light. This experience
should make us better lawyers, but more importantly, make us better people.
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