Labels: The Pros, Cons, and Effects on Society

Today, we have a submission from one of our very own Aspie Insiders, Miles Bumgardner. He writes about the pros and cons of labeling, a very interesting subject that affects every single one of us. Check it out below!

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"Labels: the pros, cons and effects on society"

"Mommy, look at the funny looking man. Is he a clown"?

"No dear, that's what he really looks like".

"Oh, he looks soooooooo weird".

It seems that, even at the youngest of ages, we as individuals are bred to label people and things that appear unusual to us. Rather than attempt to make the leap and discover what this person/thing is, we tend to fall back on the "acceptable" stereotypes we've learned from mainstream media to our own families. The guy with saggy pants suddenly becomes a gangsta. The blonde chick who sits next to you in math class is "out of your league". The child who struggles with even the simplest forms of math is viewed as being stupid.

Any of this sound familiar? Maybe you have been in these shoes yourself? Heck, I know I have!

From the outside the act of labeling can appear as harmless — though sometimes excessive — joking around. But there is always a strong possibility that within the victim there is quite a bit of damage being done. The pickings may not be all on physical appearance but rather on behavioral interactions in their environment. Personally speaking, this is where having Aspergers Syndrome places me deep within the labeling camp. Because what I do, think, and say is not the same as a certain group's I therefore become the weirdo. The outsider, who now finds it difficult to approach people because of their preconceived views on me.

Then again, I guess we all are in the labeling camp in this life. Personally, I find being labeled is like be branded as a type of food. After aren't we all, in essence, just walking packages of meat? The only difference is that some of us haven't been shrink wrapped yet!

Labels….What are they good for?

One can see how labeling individuals from a psychological standpoint can be rather helpful. Using a type of diagnostic labeling can help with a large amount of information, which can prove beneficial to the party being diagnosed to receive proper help. For example, when one hears the term "bipolar disorder", a trained professional will know and understand all about what it conveys (hopefully). There are theories stating that whatever happens within the mind can be shown on the outside of an individual. The depressed girl will wear the look and bear the air of depression, even though she may be completely oblivious to the fact she is doing so. Her philosophy can be affected, which in turn affects the way she interacts with the world, within and around herself. This may lead a way for others to take notice and proceed to help her.

Another advantage to the pro use of labeling is that, once something has been identified, one can look up information about it. Using music to guide us, let's say you want to look up similar artists to, say, Led Zeppelin. With today's technology that wouldn't be to hard: merely google "Led Zeppelin" and you will automatically be given several bands in the same time period or genre. That has proved to be a good way to branch out and make friends, because of a certain type of labeled music. Well, it has for me at least! I can't remember how many times I've sat with certain individuals discussing/analyzing the music of Pink Floyd, and being welcomed by others because of that! Ah, good times. Good times.

Hmmm, maybe labeling isn't all that bad? Well, no it's not. Unfortunately there are some downsides to being labeled (like food, remember?)

I would guess that about 90% of how and why we, as a society, label individuals is based on stereotypes. New kid comes into your class room, wearing eyeliner and all black clothing. It is so easy to jump on the bandwagon and say this kid is Emo, and more than likely will be the super creepy dude he sits by himself in the corner. Running with that logic (you've not talked to him yet, mind you) you avoid him in the hallways, ignore him when he tries to make small conversation, and put him down behind his back. On the basis of what? The way he dresses and looks. For all we know this fellow could be the happiest, most approachable chap in the world. But because you decided to run with a preconceived notion, you miss out on probably some good times.

One never knows unless they break through the looking glass and approach the guy.

One more downside, and one reason I am against labeling, is the complete absence of individuality. When one finds themselves labeled into a certain group of fellows they are expected to behave and act like the rest of the group. You like what they like. You dress how they dress. You talk how they talk and think how they think. Sounds fun right? So where's the chance to be yourself? Well, to put it simply, it doesn't exist. One couldn't merely say they were an "individual hippy' could they? No no no, all hippies smoke weed, play guitar and listen to the Grateful Dead. So if you say you're a hippy, you MUST do all of these! And we can use that for all kinds of social groups. Its not fair on any level, and frankly is rather cruel to be told you can be anybody but yourself.

So what can we do? Although this is a critical problem in the world today the only way we can fix it is starting at ground zero: ourselves. We can remind ourselves how painful it can be to put down someone merely because of the image they project. Would you like someone to do that to you? I would hope not! You control the world you live in, your individual world. By giving more compassion and more understanding to all beings, we can work to take down the wall that divides us as a race and be accepting of everyone, including ourselves. Its like what John Lennon said:

"There's nothing you can do but learn to be you in time. It's easy! All you need is love!"