Introduction
Being educable simply means to the willingness to accept the fact that it is not possible to have all the wisdom in the world concentrated in one head. With this acceptance, one proceeds to take the crucial step of listening and learning from others as opposed to making blanket or general conclusions about people based on fallacious propositions. The core idea is that as much as someone may belong to a certain group which has historically been given a particular brand, this person can be different. In fact, the modern society is made up of so many people who behave in ways that are incompatible with the historically known behaviors of the groups into which these people belong. In American race relations, the concept of being educable is extremely relevant in the minority majority relations as seen in the way the various ethnic groups in America treat each other. In this article, the African Americans, the Native Americans, European Americans, and Hispanics will be used as examples of areas where this be attitude is highly relevant.
Main body
To begin with, educability is very relevant in the perceptions of most African Americans concerning white Americans. The history of minority-majority relations as it applies to African Americans and European Americans tends to cloud the perceptions of most African Americans thus making them view European Americans as incorrigible racists. It is possible that there are some European Americans who still have the parochial mindset that may make them have a baseless sense of superiority but the truth is that most European Americans are highly remorseful of the events that took place in the days of slavery and have respect for everyone. Educability in this case will come in handy in helping the African Americans understand that not every European American is racist.
In connection to the point above, European Americans who have not managed to access sufficient exposure may have a problem understanding that no one is superior. This is especially true of some people from the Southern part of the United States whose mindset is still deeply rooted in the evil slave-master mentality. Such people will not accept a situation where an African American is in a higher position and their opposition to this situation may not be made public but will be communicated in subtle but visible ways. This is where the be attitude of being educable can come in to help such narrow minded and unexposed individuals know that members from any race can be intelligent just like members from any race can be unintelligent. For such people, learning about the achievements of African Americans such as the best neurosurgeon in the world, Dr. Ben Carson as well as their unrivaled acumen in sports and music will assist in learning to respect other people who may look different.
The generalizations held by some European Americans about Native Americans as well as Hispanics on academic incompetency can also be healed if these people who have these generalizations are educated on how some Native Americans as well as Hispanics have made outstanding achievements in academics. The reverse is also true in that Native Americans and Hispanics who interact with European Americans should be willing to learn and accept that not all European Americans hold these stereotypes against them.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the willingness to learn about other people and their way of life as well as their history will improve racial relations in a huge way. The European Americans, African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans are some of the groups on who the be attitude of “be educable” can apply very well.