Defining
Dehumanization
Objectification
sets a person up to be dehumanized. In objectification a person is in touch
with only a part of their identity. And especially their God given identity. If
you are not in touch or have a healthy connection with your entire person you
are subject to being used for something that is not safe. The
part of the person that is being internalized as an object is the weak link.
That weakness is vulnerable and is a target to be abused. It is a red flag for
the abuser. The part is not healed and there is no boundary in place.
Unfortunately,
this is more common in women than men. Women self-objectify about their bodies
based on what the messages the media project to society. This can include their
family’s norms. The messages are built around an unrealistic standard of what a
woman’s body should look like and be used for. The lie is they are an object of
visual pleasure, to be played with and belong to others. (ownership)
The media
perpetuates this through billboards, magazines, internet sites, banners and target
men and boys also to accept this ideology. This becomes a toxic cycle where
women are judged thru this sick lens of things like fat, old, worn out, not
pretty enough etc. The health industry also perpetuates these norms in
advertising.
Natural aging
has also become a body shaming event in numerous industries. It is used to sell
products and outdo their competitors. It plays a role in denying
the actual aging process. We all want to look our best, however not at the
expense of losing who we really are.
Dehumanizing
or to be dehumanized is to deprive or deny someone’s human qualities. Those
would be kindness, civility, life, remove their qualities, identity, feelings,
thoughts, autonomy, independence, degrade, disgrace, disregard, devalue, suppress,
and deny their unique personality. This is a brief list. This can be done from
person to person, within a divided group, externally through media, commerce, a
family unit, a form of government, or any other way people are relational.
The things
used to dehumanize are cruelty, exerted suffering, overly extended suffering,
verbal, emotional and economic abuse. Included would be taking advantage of a
person’s weakness or disability and loss or awareness of one’s identity. Losses
of family structure is a huge factor since it is the fabric of society. Family
structure is a stability that holds things together in society.
Classifying
and labeling people in a dehumanizing way is further
disassembling of a person’s wholeness. Categorizing a person in this way aborts
their growth and prosperity. It not only causes division within the person, but
it also divides people from each other.
Dehumanization
in humanity is propelled into society in the form of philosophies, categories,
and concepts. It comes as psychological warfare, all forms of violence, genocide,
attitudes, us and them mentality, desensitization, militarily that humans are
less than animals, eugenics, epigenetics, race wars, name calling, peer pressure,
empathy reduction in fields of medicine, and terrorists.
Dehumanization
is a false justification for immoral behavior such as violence, genocide,
largescale atrocities, and degrading mistreatment of human beings. This is a
much larger subject than is written here which is not necessary to write in
detail at this time.
