Travel and tolerance

I recently had someone ask me if I thought people who were well-travelled were less likely to be racist. It's not an easy question to answer without sounding critical but I do believe travel can make you think twice about treating people the same no matter their race and showing them respect. Here is why I think travelling can make you become more accepting:

•  Travel opens your mind to new ways of life and you learn to become tolerant. In fact, not only do you become tolerant but you embrace differences. You begin to consider what it might be like to live there and you become more understanding of the difficulties citizens of the country might come across.

• Before going abroad, most people would research how to conduct themselves in that country. For example are there any laws that need to be respected that we don't have in our own countries? Am I supposed to give tips? How should I dress for going to a religious place? This shows an acceptance for different religions, customs and legal systems.

• You will meet new people who think in different ways to you. You may have discussions with them about their values and become more understanding towards them. In this way, you see life through their eyes and can see why they think differently about it to you.

• Stereotypes and misconceptions vanish and you realise you can't group together an entire nationality. 

• You often see misrepresentations about countries in the media, and whether you like it or not, it affects the way you see the world (unless you know just how biased they are). Getting out of your own country gives you clarity of mind. It is unlikely you can be persuaded about anything by the media if you don't understand the language. Therefore you are experiencing exactly what you are seeing.

I hope my post won't be taken in the wrong way. Under no circumstances am I saying that people who don't travel are racist, nor do I think that racism can easily be solved simply by travelling. Racism is obviously a much more complex problem than that and I wouldn't have any idea how to solve it. However, I recognise the benefits of travelling of broadening horizons and challenging your thoughts on different matters.