Cross-cultural Ignorance and Gullibility

People have trouble accepting, and learning about a culture which they are not part of. People are consumed by stereotypes, which make them gullible. I came across this type of problem again this year. One of my friends had henna tattoo on her hands, and people kept on asking her stupid questions like “Are you getting married?” Some of my friends were questioning her and I could see that she was annoyed, so I stepped in and said “Yeah, didn’t you know. She’s going to leave us once she graduates.” Though I was trying to be sarcastic, my friends took me seriously. When I told them that I was joking, they looked embarrassed. At that moment I realized how gullible my friends were, and how uneducated they were about the Indian Culture. People still think that Indians are primitive. When they hear “India” they immediately think “snake charmers” or “Gandhi." When I was in elementary school, people used to point to the middle of their head, and call me “Gandhi." They said “Gandhi” as if he was a horrible guy. They did not understand that Gandhi did not only help India, but also the US. Martin Luther King Jr., deeply influenced by Gandhi. Martin Luther King Jr.’s ideas about the civil rights movement were greatly influenced by Gandhi. Another aspect about India people don’t understand is that India is a multicultural nation. People used to ask me why I wasn’t wearing a dot on my forehead. When I told them I was a Sikh not Hindu, they refused to understand, and continued to ask me. India is home to many religions not only Hinduism. India also has Christians, Muslims, Sikhs, etc. This makes me question diversity in the US. I’m not saying that nobody understands, many people do understand This does not apply to everybody, and sometimes people come across gullible trying to be understanding of a culture and trying not to be judgmental.