Quote of the Day - Tatum Article

"(10.) Prejudice is one of the inescapable consequences of living in a racist society. Cultural racism—the cultural images and messages that affirm the assumed superiority of Whites and the assumed inferiority of people of color—is like smog in the air. Sometimes it is so thick it is visible, other times it is less apparent,[9] but always, day in and day out, we are breathing it in. None of us would introduce ourselves as “smog-breathers” (and most of us don’t want to be described as prejudiced), but if we live in a smoggy place, how can we avoid breathing the air? If we live in an environment in which we are bombarded with stereotypical images in the media, are frequently exposed to the ethnic jokes of friends and family members, and are rarely informed of the accomplishments of oppressed groups, we will develop the negative ideas about those groups that form the basis of prejudice. […]"

I think that this is the most important paragraph in the article because it actively defines what prejudice is. It also provides a good analogy to help us better understand the concept. I drew attention to the smog analogy because it is the one thing all different cultures and races can understand. The author claims we always breath in the smog, and it surrounds us all the time. I also underlined the last line of the paragraph, because I think it is true that we are bombarded with negative stereotypes rather than the achievements of these groups. Unless we can focus on "breaking the cycle", we can never get rid of racism.