Discussion idea:

* How do we come to form negative opinions about groups of people?

One way is having one or more bad experiences with members of that group. For example a White cop roughs up a young Black man. Or a young Black male mugs a White person. Incidents like these can help start or reinforce bad feelings about a whole group of people based on the actions of a few individuals.

Another is being exposed to the hatreds of others through family or the media.

Why did Sharif hate gays so much? Did he have any horrible experiences with them? Did he know many personally? Or did he mostly pick up his attitudes from other people or the media?

Note: There's no religious side to his fear. No reference to what his girlfriend or friends would think. No anxiety about friends visiting him.

Discussion idea:

Sharif carried some stereotypical ideas about gays nto his new residence. Some of his ideas changed. Some didn't. Here are some examples:

Gays will try to seduce you, even when they know you are heterosexual. Sharif finds out this is not true.

Gays are only interested in talking about "gay" things. Sharif discovers he has a lot in common with some of his gay housemates.

Gays dress like women or act in ways that identify them as gay. Sharif seems to cling to this idea. He never describes a gay housemate in terms of how "normal" or "masculine" they may look. He seems to associate gayness with outrageousness. This is reflected in a previous statement that in his former group home "all" the residents were straight. Presumably he thinks this because none of them flaunted their gayness.

Sexuality is something you choose. Ask your students whether sexuality is something you choose, or is part of your nature? What does Sharif think about this? How do they know? (Does he have conflicted feelings?)

Being gay is a mental disorder. After awhile he realizes "they are decent people just like anyone."

Discussion idea:

Sharif comes to "accept" gay people. How would he feel if a White bigot transferred to a mostly Black school and wrote a story entitled Overcoming My Fear of Blacks? What if this person had written about Blacks, as Sharif does about gays, "It took two months but I've learned to accept who they are and that they can't be changed." Would they be offended? Or would they be pleased that the person had changed his attitude? Or both?