Prejudice and Fear: How it Begins

There is a musical I remember watching as a child called South Pacific. Among it's many wonderful songs there is one that has always haunted me. The lyrics deal with prejudice and they are as true today as they were all those years ago.

You've got to be taught

To hate and fear,

You've got to be taught

From year to year,

It's got to be drummed

In your dear little ear

You've got to be carefully taught.

You've got to be taught to be afraid

Of people whose eyes are oddly made,

And people whose skin is a diff'rent shade,

You've got to be carefully taught.

You've got to be taught before it's too late,

Before you are six or seven or eight,

To hate all the people your relatives hate,

You've got to be carefully taught!