Summary
of Discussion
We
have already had contact with many different people and cultures because
our parents are on the move, so most of us have already lived in different
countries and met people with other backgrounds.
It
is true that sometimes there are things that make us uncomfortable
or that we do not understand. Like for instance one of us lived in
Arabia where women have to cover themselves. Well, it is strange for
us who do not see things the same way. We know one girl who was discriminated
against because of her origin and name - she was different from the
other girls. When people got to know her better, everyone thought
her ways were really nice and pleasant. In this group one of us has
suffered violence and hatred because of the conflict in the Middle
East.
We
are all different , which is a good thing because the world would
be very boring if we weren't. We are all different because of the
upbringing our parents gave us, because of the customs, food, books
we read and things we prefer. On the other hand we are the same, because
we all live on planet Earth, we are all human beings so there should
be no violence among us. Yet, some people consider themselves superior
to others - what is a civilized world and a primitive world? Some
people think that they are superior because they are technologically
more developed, have written more books or have more money. Because
of this they think it is right to impose their culture on other countries,
to teach them the "correct" or "civilized" way to act. Take for example
what happened when Latin America was discovered and many local cultures
were destroyed. You cannot connect through peace if you impose, use
force or control others. If others are to change, this must be done
because they have decided - they must have the freedom to choose.
We believe the Internet
and new technology helps to bring people together and discuss, gives
us a lot of information about other cultures so we are no longer isolated
in our groups, towns, country. However, we also see there are people
who try to influence others with distorted ideas - for example hate
or revolutionary groups, pornography. This generates misunderstandings
and can provoke violence.We are not influenced because we feel it
is not a positive thing. One of us thinks these sites and publications
should be censored.
Change is important
- but we cannot forget our culture, our origins, what we believe in,
or feel superior or inferior. We should be allowed to believe in different
things, have different images of the world...but we must not forget
to always to respect the other and connect through peace.
9
people took part in these discussions: Marc, Pierre, Magali, Charles-Henri,
Nathalie, André, Charles Philipe, Stephane and Morris