Reviewer copy of the discrimination model for the hate, humor, and humiliation book roundtable. This is the library's escalation model: six stages by which ordinary preference hardens step by step into exclusion, hate, and violence, drawn as one continuous chart, with a reverse arrow under every single stage: each stage has a documented way back, and the ways back are part of the model, not an afterthought. On the live site this material sits behind a gentled, opt-in entry (the ungated first impression is soft by design; the stark full chart is seen only by someone who chooses to go deeper). Credit line on the original: Discrimination model by Dr. Ruth Diaz. Graphic and information by Sotalo. Made for Bridgemakers.
Quote: "That's not my thing. I'm glad it makes them happy, but it's not for me."
Body: Preferences play a huge role in social spheres: we all have likes, dislikes, and pleasures. We tend to gravitate towards people more like us as part of our preferences, and we rarely branch beyond our favorite circles. Preferences are benign and focused on love. Being OK with the preferences of others is where our humanity gets tested. As we keep indulging our preferences, the process towards hardened, exclusionary thinking begins. It's important to try new things, meet new people, and engage in different communities. When you discover more things to like, your preferences grow while the list of things you don't like diminishes.
Examples (a plain list here, not a comparison): Language, Media, Food, Activities, Groups/Communities
Reverse-arrow caption (how to walk this back): To prevent preferences from becoming walls, be aware of how and where those preferences are steering you. If you feel your preferences are leading you away from friends, try to venture out and reach more. You may be surprised by the friends you find just beyond the walls of your preference.
Quote: "That's not my crowd. I'd rather leave them be."
Body: When our likes and preferences take hold, our decisions become biased towards increasing the process of excluding things, activities, people, and communities we don't like. This bias clouds our judgement and makes us less impartial when rendering decisions. Leaders will tip the scale towards our preferences rather than remaining neutral for everyone in the group, including marginalized groups. They may not realize they're doing it, but most communities have inherent biases formed by their leaders.
Examples (name, then who the bias favors over whom):
Confirmation Bias: Beliefs > Contradictory evidence
Status Quo Bias: Existing culture > Change and adaptations
Cronyism: Known friends > New friends
Stereotyping: Us > Them
Reverse-arrow caption: Take a look around and seek the imbalance. If your biases are leading the community, and your friends, in directions away from the general public, take note of who is being promoted, and why. Not all biases are justified. It can be difficult to reduce biases because they are so comfortable.
Quote: "Yeah, they're probably not good for the group. We'll have a vote, but I'm pretty sure how it's going to go."
Body: When we become more entrenched in our biases, we form prejudice, which immediately renders judgement before having all the facts. For instance, how often did a community leader blame someone who was Autistic for a behavioral problem without hearing their side of the story? How about suppressing a Furry for having an interest that makes others in the community feel uncomfortable? Prejudice makes judgement faster, not better. In many cases, the best ways to resolve conflict remind people of their humanity and result in growth. But prejudice always assumes proper judgement without any learning or growth. Prejudice is a fixed mindset.
Examples:
Sexism: Males > Females
Ablism: Abled > Disabled
Gay Panic Defense: Heterosexuals > Homosexuals
FA Babyfur Ban [VERIFY placement]: Furries > Babyfurs/ABDL
Reverse-arrow caption: Educate yourself. Prejudices can be reduced by asking questions and reaching out to communities. You might find your internal concepts and ideas about different groups are not shared equally among individual members. You may find totally unexpected results by simply reaching out instead of snap-judgements.
Quote: "If you talk with them, you're not one of us. We don't accept that."
Body: Attitudes with exclusion are discriminatory. This completely prevents groups from learning and growing together. Individuals and groups make decisions to cut people out and leave people behind. At this point, humanity is already forgotten. Since many people in different groups have friends across the aisles, they have to make their own decisions whether to stay in exclusionary communities or side with their friends. People tend to accept discrimination and try to plot both sides, which allows hatred to fester. Leaders who practice active discrimination drive wedges between friends and eventually result in collapse of the group.
Examples:
Jim Crow Laws: Whites > African Americans
Japanese Internment Camps: U.S. Civilians > Japanese
FA Babyfur Ban [VERIFY placement]: Furries > Babyfurs/ABDL
Reverse-arrow caption: Reducing discrimination requires acknowledgement of the discrimination and how that harmed the community and others. Reversal requires a commitment to responsibility and understanding, and major outreach to those groups that were previously segregated. Much work will be needed to mend.
Quote: "They're horrible, they're the problem, and they need to be stopped. They shouldn't be here."
Body: As hatred takes hold, humanity isn't just forgotten, it's attacked. All manners of harassment against the targeted group become justified and promoted. Hate swirls into a groupthink tornado that feeds into itself and everyone. Most tolerant people leave communities at this point, when hatred attacks their friends. But the cyclone pulls in people who found comfort in discrimination and see no problem with it. Because these groups only accept their own fixed mindset, they are extremely resistant to conflicting information. Until they're willing to challenge their thinking, they will keep justifying hate.
Examples:
Klu Klux Klan: Whites > African Americans
Jack Thompson: Parents > Video games
Donald Trump: White Americans > Muslims, Immigrants, Mexicans, Disabled, Trans
Reverse-arrow caption: Recognize how targeted hate harms others and replace it with tolerance. Things you don't need to be hated to avoid don't deserve others to be denied love. A leader who lacks tolerance doesn't permit others to love. Tolerance opens the floor to acceptance immediately, but time will be needed to mend the trauma and rebuild trust.
Quote: "Death threats? They brought it on themselves. We'll be safer once they're gone."
Body: After justifying hate, justifying death becomes easy. All that remains is the desire to eliminate outside perspectives and people. Nations that cross this threshold result in wars, conflicts, ethnic cleansing, and era-ending catastrophes. This doesn't resolve conflict, but creates situations that grow into future conflicts. People willing and able to kill are too dangerous to address directly. For everyone's safety, authorities should get involved. Hate + Crime = Hate Crime.
Examples:
Holocaust: Nazi Party > Jews, Disabled, Slavs, Homosexuals
Trail of Tears: U.S. Government > Native American Tribes
Jack Thompson $10,000 Murder Bounty: Jack Thompson > Game industry executives
Kiwi Farms: Internet Trolls > Minorities
Reverse-arrow caption: Is this really the answer? Won't problems still exist even after cleansing? Recognizing violence begets violence, fuels extremism, and physical harm is not the answer weens most people off a KILL mentality. This becomes harder to do when the KILL mentality feels justified.
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End of reviewer copy. The live, interactive version is at ruthdiaz.world/preference-to-kill/ (its content loads in an embedded frame, which most automated readers cannot open; this page exists so reviewers can read the model directly).