Reply To: eliminating or reducing racism
Paul McCabeHi another,
It is fantastic that you desire to reduce or even eliminate the emotional triggers caused by certain people, groups or politicians.
Politics has been particularly bitter and tribal this year (in the UK and US, anyway), and I think it's created a lot of hysteria, bad feeling and unfair accusations about the “other side.”
I think the word “racism” itself has been diminished. People are often called racist, bigoted or small-minded these days wnen, in actual fact, they probably do not deserve those tags.
From a spiritual point of view, I think we lose a lot by putting ourselves and others in these little “boxes” – categorising people as belonging to this group, that group or ascribing stereotypical traits to people.
However, we ARE bombarded with fear-based and blame-based rhetoric in the media and even in the streets. Tools like PSTEC can be very effective for separating the hysteria from the reality.
To put it another way, “keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs.”
It starts with a question…
“What do I know FOR SURE?”
So, if a political party or politician you distrust gains power, it might be worth asking…
“What do I know FOR SURE?”
Do any of us KNOW what is going to happen or what that person's intention is…FOR SURE? Do any of us really know what the future holds for sure? Or what a leader is really like “at heart”?
It is a question to really ponder and, in all honesty, I find asking myself this question to be very effective.
As for seeing people of different races and getting a snap judgement, if you were told “(insert race) can't be trusted” enough times or if you had a bad experience with a group of people from a different race, there may be some subconscious programming there. But I can assure you that my own snap judgements have become much kinder and more rounded than they have ever been, and I do not get hysterical about anything.
To soften your snap judgements, I would recommend using counterexamples. If you had a belief like “(insert race) cannot be trusted”, for instance, try to pick examples where you had positive experiences with someone from that race or where you noticed someone from that race being trustworthy. This is like a training exercise for your mind. It opens up new possibilities.
This is just a brief overview of that process, however. Tim has a free track on Mindfulness that gives more details on this. I highly recommend listening to it, if you get the chance.
http://pstecaudiosource.org/mindfulness
Because some of this is hardwired into us, it is possible to hold beliefs and “gut instincts” with which we consciously disagree.
To that end, I would recommend using the Click Tracks to eliminate the undesired feelings. It worth persevering with this because, as Peter mentioned, there are many surprising benefits to using these tools and processes.
Good luck with it and please let us know how it goes for you.
Paul
Paul McCabe – PSTEC Master Practitioner
http://www.lifestyleforchange.com
Please contact me anytime if you want any assistance in utilising PSTEC to help you live a life of tremendous freedom & possibility.
Recreate yourself with PSTEC.
Skype, Zoom, in-person & phone sessions available…