significantly challenged and changed by engaging with them first-hand. Prior to their participation in the BBP they were aware of only being exposed to the generalisations and mostly negative stereotypes of the other put out by others and the media. With no contrary experience, they simply went along with those generalisations. However, through direct engagement with these others in the programme, they now could form their own personal perceptions and understandings that differed often significantly from the stereotypes. Fiona, a Christian girl, commented for instance:
I was having a conversation with one of the Islamic girls…and the way she was describing her affiliation with the Islamic faith was like at our school and other schools that can be affiliated with a religion, how not everyone is necessarily a follower of that religion. And she was saying to me 'I go to parties on the weekend, I work at Coles'. That struck a chord with me. That just because she went to an Islamic school didn't necessarily mean that she was a terrorist sort of thing. It sounds horrible [but] it gave me a more realistic view of people who are affiliated with other faiths.
Most students agreed that they gained a more realistic perception of those of other faiths. Some acknowledged that until then, they had been largely sheltered from those of other religious backgrounds, by their family or faith community. But for several like Jo, a Catholic girl, they emerged not only feeling neutral towards the other, but strongly positive.
So for our whole lives we've been surrounded by only Catholicism, only this and I had no contact with anyone that was Muslim, not anything. I was so sheltered and so I came in with this prejudice….[N]ow when I see someone with a headscarf I just think, cool, because they remind me of Building Bridges. And I don't even feel like neutral, I feel positive towards people that have headscarves.
Many went further, to say they would defend the other against the widespread
generalisations and negative stereotypes made about people of faith in society by the media and word of mouth. Quite a few had already challenged their friends and family members by explaining how the religious other does not fit these stereotypes, nor can they all be so simply generalised. For instance Leonie, at a Christian (Baptist) school said:
When I see articles in the newspaper or any kind of media against the Jewish faith or the Muslim faith or even the Christian faith, I can react more in defence of the other religions than I did before…because I know people that are just like me but are of a different faith, I can be more defensive of them. It’s just not right what they’re saying, it’s not like that at all, it’s like this.
Others realised that most of the jokes made of other races and religions came out of ignorance; a lack of real understanding of the other, so were motivated like Chugai, this Buddhist student, to question and challenge the joke-teller:
Before if someone would tell a racist, like a xenophobic joke or something, I wouldn’t really say anything, but now if someone is insulting people of other religions, because I have friend of other religions now, it hurts me a lot more than it used to and I don’t stand for it anymore.
This was like Aviva, a Jewish student, who challenges stereotypes and coloured jokes now: “Because [now thru the BBP] I know people, I'm like, well, that actually offends my friend…so it's like sticking up for your friends, and I’m like actually, you know, one that's
wrong and two that's mean and it hurts.” Some found they were less willing to blindly accept what they had been taught about the other, whilst others discovered the other suffers from negative stereotyping too. This brought a sense of mutual understanding and empathy and underlined the importance of knowing the other person before judging them. They now make their own decisions about others, rather than rely solely on portrayals in the media. One boy at a Catholic school said he no longer jumps to some conclusion about the other, but first considers what it might be like in the other’s shoes, like this female student at a Catholic school, Tracey:
Its changed my attitude, because I have been able to make my own decisions and have my own thoughts based on the things I’ve learnt at Building Bridges, and this has meant that I haven’t been as judgmental as I would have been [of people] in the past, because I have a more broad view of other people’s religions. The media hasn’t affected me as much as it might have a year ago.
Students emphasised the need to talk with the other person before making an
assumption or assessment of them in order to overcome ignorance that perpetuates the fear and generalisations about the other. Esther, a student from a Jewish school, said:
I’m not so quick to judge anymore. I see the person. When you’re walking on the street, obviously you’ll see the way a person dresses and you’ll immediately have a perception of how they are because of what I see in the media. Now, because of the programme, I feel I want to get to know that person and get to know their story rather than be blinded by what I’ve heard on the news.
Theme 5: I am more willing to mix with those of different backgrounds than