I’m very keen on education helping replace stigmas. When a peer myopically generates a false bias – a stigma they have it worse than any other peer – this saddens me deeply.

I once had a peer tell me, “You have no idea what it’s like to have European imperialists come to your land, slaughter your people, rape your women, and spread their diseases. You have no idea what it is to have brown skin and be victimized because of it. Your ancestors never knew this pain like mine did.”

Er, dude? I think I’ve mentioned several times I have a great amount of Polynesian blood coursing through my veins. One generation back, in fact. I’m first generation Tahitian born in the US of A.

What’s worse is this peer is a NAMI Connection facilitator (Robert) where a main rule for group is “We don’t judge other’s pain as less than our own.”

My date last night asked what hypocrisy is and what stigma means. That is the example I gave her.