Stereotyping

I think stereotyping happens because of bad experiences, the news of which spreads rapidly and gets stuck in people's minds easily. Even if it was just a single bad experience for just one person.

I remember during the first year of my college, I met a fellow student from Assiut that I didn't like. She was that kind of person who wanted to get along with people quickly, she was always making jokes with everyone. I was the opposite, an introvert and liked to build friendships slowly with others. In addition, there was a very common stereotype of people from Assiut that they were stingy and had bad manners. So the known stereotype strengthened my judgment of her.

Day by day, I got a chance to get closer to her and to know her better. As a result, I built a good relationship with her. I learnt how to accept and respect her ways and behaviors. I found out that she was generous and kindhearted. She helped and supported anyone who needed her help. It's true I still consider her being nosey sometimes but we are all humans and have negative and positive sides of our characters. The question is how to accept and respect this without attempting to change the other to be an identical copy of us.