I have no idea whether the concept of “inference categories” ever caught on, but I read a book (whose titles I cannot remember for the life of me) years ago that used this construct and I have found it valuable ever since. It is a concept that fills in a gap for me between implicit and explicit bias; it is a shorthand for biases that impact our thinking and creates barriers that constrain and limit other thinking. Here is an example:
I was talking with an Emergency Medical Services (EMS) worker about his experience through the pandemic, and he shared this following statement. “During the pandemic, domestic violence calls and injuries due to domestic abuse sky-rocketed. Whenever we got a call, it was a sure bet that there would be a Trump sign in the front yard.” My red-flag started waving, so I asked some follow-up questions. “Are you saying you saw a correlation between abuse and political position?” “Oh, yeah,” he replied. “Did you count the signs?” I asked. Well, no, but there were a lot of them.” he explained. “Can you define “a lot” for me? “Uhm, I don’t know, it was often enough that I noticed,” he said. “I am just thinking out loud, so be patient with me, could it be that you noticed the Trump signs because you have a personal feeling that Republicans are more volatile and ready to fight than Democrats?” His response was emphatic and fast, “No way! There were very few Biden signs on any of the calls we responded to.” “Okay, I just need to ask, what constitutes “very few” in your memory?” He thought for a moment, “I don’t think we saw more than three Biden signs, but we saw a bunch of Trump signs, and a bunch of Blue Lives Matter flags, and American flags, and…” “Wait,” I interrupted. Were all these things on the same lawns, or are you equating Blue Lives Matter and American flags with Trump signs?” “Well, yeah,” he replied. “What do you mean, “yeah.” Are you counting people who fly the American flag as Trump supporters?” I asked. “Well, yeah,” he said again. “Okay, hold it, do you think there are no Democrats that fly the flag or support the police?” He looked me in the eye and said, “Sure, but it is mostly Trump supporters.”
This young man provides an illustration and example of the ubiquity and danger of inference categories. Here is a breakdown (for this young man):
Trump = Republican = American flag = Blue Lives Matter = volatility & violence = domestic violence = spousal/child abuse (all based on a sampling of his personal experience in a particular context at a particular time). It takes no time at all to deconstruct such a thinking path, especially since it is based on categorical inferences that combine to create a false or skewed reality. From my own personal experience, I can counter a number of inferences. I have many Independent/Democrat/Undecided friends who proudly fly the American flag. I myself support both Black Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter. I do not assign blame to either side for the problems inherent in our current law enforcement systems. The system is broken and cannot protect the most vulnerable, nor can it weed out the unacceptable. The injustices against black and brown people will not be solved by punishing the police. A complete reformation of the system is called for, and tinkering with the most obvious broken bits and pieces won’t accomplish much of anything. I have spoken with well over 50 MAGA Trump supporters who are not violent and do not support violence, who would never lift a hand against another human being, who deeply love America and democracy, but choose Trump for a very personal and basic reason. I know a couple very militant and hostile Biden supporters who would engage in a violent response to attack at the drop of a hat.
Moving from the subjective to the objective, there is plenty of good research and survey work that deconstructs our inference categories completely. Guess what? Not all Mexicans are drug dealers, rapists, criminals, and thugs. In fact? Very few are and those who make it through to America are coming in with aid from corporate funding, not sneaking across the border. Oh, well…
Categorizing whole groups of people is a losers game to begin with. Look at the damage and harm done by talking about Muslims in this country. Much rhetoric focuses on the slimmest minority of fundamentalist and violent sects to define an entire global religion. We really aren’t that stupid, are we? No, by percentages, as many Christians would fall into the “terrorist” category as Muslims. But categories are fertile soil for false and imperfect inferences.
I was raised in a household where I was taught that black people were criminal, violent, hated white people, and couldn’t be trusted under any circumstances. It wasn’t until I intentionally examined and reveals my long list of inferences that I was able to comprehend that there is no such thing as a category “black people!” There are billions of black persons and very few are actually all that alike. Every person of color I have ever spoken to has a distinct personality, a rich narrative, and I find a lot in common with them. I dated an African American young woman in high school for a while, I spent many hours in seminary with the Korean students, have been an ally and champion for Hispanic/Latino leadership in our church, and have had an amazing opportunity for ministry with immigrants. In every case, the people I have spent time with defied any simple categorization, and any inferences I would have made about them would have been fundamentally wrong and insensitively reductionist. There is absolutely NO value in inference categories.
If I could be granted one wish in this current culture, especially in an election year, it would be to eliminate all inference categories and the implicit/explicit biases they support and generate. To be able to see and think clearly at such a time as this? It would be a true gift from God.
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