Quote:
Originally Posted by
ArianaBlack 
"Needless to say, what was taught was not only untrue, but it was also harmful. Thinking about how we felt about assumptions that others make about ourselves and our friends... Why might it be harmful to make assumptions and believe stereotypes about muggles?" He paused for a moment to allow the question to sink in. "How can we move forward and beyond buying into these assumptions?"
Violet listened to the replies of her fellow students, thinking about what they all said. Of course, the main emphasis was on negative assumptions, but you could make wrong assumptions the other way, too.
"You can make false positive assumptions as well, and those can be equally dangerous. When I was growing up, my family would never talk about or have anything to do with anything Muggle, and that made me develop a kind of fascination with them. I thought my family was just prejudiced and that Muggles were all wonderful.
Then I met some...rather unpleasant Muggles, which got me in a lot of trouble. And for a while I thought that my family was right and I didn't want anything to do with Muggles. But now I realize--Muggles are just people, like Wizards. They can be good, or bad, or anywhere in between. You just have to judge everyone by what they say and, most importantly, what they do, and make your own evaluations."
Violet sat back, a little startled at herself for uncharacteristically revealing so much personal information.