Noun (Click on the speech icon to hear the pronunciation of the word [zen-uh-foh-bee-uh]

Noun—A fear of foreigners or strangers

Getting a job as a greeter with the United Nations is probably not the best career option for someone who suffers from xenophobia, a fear of foreigners or strangers.

Xenophobia has its roots in fear — literally. Phobia comes from the Greek word meaning "fear." Given that the fear in question is of strangers, it makes sense that xeno- comes from the Greek word for — you guessed it — "stranger, foreigner." In the case of xenophobia, the fear is irrational. Someone who is xenophobic might distrust a neighbor he's never met, or a sheikh who lives halfway around the world. Xenophobia is like racism, but instead of fearing or distrusting people because of the color of their skin, you fear or distrust them because of their nationality, or because they are — or seem — foreign to you.

Other forms:: xenophobic, Xenophon, xenophobian

Near Synonyms: nationalism, bigotry, isolationism, racism, ethnocentrism, jingoism, ethnocentricity

Antonyms: xenomania, xenophilia, xenophily

Usage:

“This xenophobia is a remarkably constant feature of eighteenth-century satire on ‘taste.’” (From The Man

of Taste)

“Acute attacks of xenophobia often caused riots in the city.” (From St. Augustin)

“Mild strands of paranoid xenophobia permeate public discourse in central Europe and, even more so, in east Europe.” (From The Belgium Curtain: Europe after Communism)

DIRECTIONS: Discuss the meaning of the word with your students, with special emphasis on any

variations or nuances of the word specific to your discipline. Consider taking it a step further by using one or all of the following ideas as you involve students with the new vocabulary. Remember to preview all content you intend to share with students. Not all items on the lists provided below are appropriate for all classes or age levels.

#1 Translations Brazilian Portuguese: xenofobia

Chinese: 排外情绪排外情绪緒

European Spanish: xenofobia

French: xénophobie

German: Fremdenfeindlichkeit

Italian: xenofobia

Japanese: 外国人嫌い

Korean: 외국인 혐오

Portuguese: xenofobia

Spanish: xenofobia

#2 Political Cartoons—The Red Scare of the 1920s

Read this article on immigration from 1870-1920 and then “read” the related political cartoons.

http://voices.yahoo.com/immigration-1870-1920-nativist-xenophobia-379741.html

Discuss the meaning of these political cartoons (3 total) from the 1920s with your students.

Consider having them use the OPTIC strategy for reading a visual.

Or have them complete an Acrostic using the term Red Scare or Xenophobia for a challenge. Fill in the acrostic with information they can glean from the cartoons.

#3 Political Cartoons, more recent (5 total) Published June 2008

“The political violence in Zimbabwe has approached unprecedented levels not seen since the early 80's,

#4 Xenophobia Wordle

Show this Wordle to students and have them each pick out the ten words that they think are most important to understanding the concept of xenophobia. For each word, have them write a sentence or two explaining its significance to the concept. As a small group or whole class, try to create a list of the top ten words, encouraging students to think critically and argue persuasively for their choices.

#5 Check out this autobiography of Christopher Lee. “From the cult classic The Wicker

Man to the blood–thirsty Count Dracula, Christopher Lee has been the face of

cinema villainy for decades. In Lord of Misrule, Lee tells the story of his exceptional

career, in films like The Curse of Frankenstein, the James Bond classic The Man

with the Golden Gun, and more recently, in Tim Burton’s Sleepy Hollow.After

appearing in more than 300 films, and a legend in his own right, Lee undertook

one of the most demanding roles of his career as Saruman in Peter

Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings. Shortly after, as one of the most powerful

adversaries in the Star Wars canon, Lee proved that at 80, he is still a commanding

screen presence. Written with self–deprecating wit and laced with hilarious

anecdotes, Lord of Misrule is a marvelous career history of the man The

Guardian called “the coolest actor on the planet.” Discuss this excerpt from the book: “I learned early that the one truly

international quality among people of all races is xenophobia.” ―

Christopher Lee

Ask students how this might be true, and how it might be both good and bad.

http://www.amazon.com/Lord-Misrule-The-Autobiography-Christopher/dp/0752857703/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1396625304&sr=8-

8&keywords=the+lord+of+misrule

#6

Xenophobia in America 4 min., 5 sec. Uploaded on Oct 5, 2010 Protests against the construction of new mosques, illegal

immigration, and economic reform, point to xenophobic

tendencies building up in America. Ethnic minorities and Muslims

in the US are being targeted as "the other." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhzC5aJf8W0

#7

Xenophobia in South Africa: Life at The Bluewaters

Refugee Camp Uploaded on Jul 17, 2010

Global Nomads Group visits the Bluewaters Refugee Camp

outside of Cape Town, South Africa, to speak with it's inhabitants,

the victims of the May 2008 xenophobic attacks. Background: In

May 2008 mobs of poor South Africans attacked immigrants,

refugees, and asylum-seekers for fear that they would take their

jobs and resources. The violence killed more than 60 people and

displaced over 100, 000 from their homes.

4 min., 2 sec. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fq_PHRPrruY

#8 “Do Wild Bats Hold the Key to Understanding Human Tribal

Behavior?” Read this article published in the Scientific American on July 12, 2012 for an interesting discussion of what studying animal behaviors can tell us about ourselves. About 14 lines down, the author states: “Xenophobia and the tribalism it incites are at the root of wars.” http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/WSS/post.php?blog=49&post=3642

#9 “The Behavioral Immune System”

Read this article published in the Scientific American on June 14, 2011 about “how unconscious fears of infection shape many aspects of our psychology.” In the fifth paragraph, the author, Mark Schaller, states that “in recent years, my collaborators and I have found that these disease-avoidant psychological processes contribute to prejudices against people who are disabled, obese, or old. These same processes also contribute to ethnocentrism and xenophobia.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-behavioral-immune-system/

#10 “In a Globalized World, Are Invasive Species a Thing of the Past?” Published at Time.com by Bryan Walsh on June 14, 2011

“There's an illegal immigrant cruising its way up the Mississippi River. The Asian carp — a common name for a few separate but similar species of carp — was imported into the U.S. by Midwestern fish farmers in the 1970s.

The author states that “though the concern about the carp is rooted in fact, there's also an element of xenophobia to the big public reaction to the fish. Not only are Asian carp possibly dangerous, they're an alien, invasive species. Quite simply, they shouldn't be there. Invasive plants and animals are viewed as the enemy of nature, outsiders that wreck the balance of the environment and muscle out beloved native species.”

http://content.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2077582,00.html?xid=rss-health&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+time%2Fscienceandhealth+%28TIME%3A+Top+Science+Stories%29

Watch the related video: “At the annual Redneck Fishing Tournament in Bath, Illinois, put down the pole and grab a net, because these fish will come to you...fast! “ (6 min., 2 sec.)

http://content.time.com/time/video/player/0,32068,541363358001_2010246,00.html

#11 “Small Business Advice: How to Overcome Cultural Misconceptions

and Xenophobia” Read this article published in The Washington Post on December 17, 2013 by Manpreet Singh. Singh is “the founder and president of SevaCall, a Washington, D.C.-based startup that helps consumers find high quality professionals in minutes. He is also a member of the Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an organization comprised of promising young entrepreneurs. Singh asserts in this article that “Overcoming xenophobia is really just a branding challenge, but it’s an extremely challenging one,” and then he offers “four tips that [he believes]can strengthen minority and immigrant business branding efforts, and they revolve around two important elements: education and multifaceted storytelling.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/on-small-business/small-business-advice-how-to-overcome-cultural-misconceptions-and-xenophobia/2013/12/13/4415936e-6429-11e3-91b3-f2bb96304e34_story.html?wprss=rss_business

#12 “Goal: The New York Times Soccer Blog” Read this article (and watch the accompanying slide show) entitled “U.S. Open Cup:

Early Years” by Ted Westervelt, published on May 2, 2013 in The New York Times. This

is the first of a series on the U.S. Open Cup.

“The author, Ted Westervelt, spent 15 years in politics before he began to passionately promote American soccer history, promotion and relegation, and independence for U.S. clubs.”

In his article, Westervelt asserts that “the first 99 years of U.S. Open Cup history are not only the story of American club soccer. It is the story of the modern United States.” He also asserts that “American soccer players, clubs and supporters have always faced adversity: xenophobia, discrimination, ignorance and disrespect.”

Part 1 of this slide-show series — 1914 to 1938 — defines the tournament.

http://goal.blogs. nytimes.com/2013/05/02/u-s-open-cup-early-years/?_php=true&_type=blogs&partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0

#13 “Higher Education Needs to Build Global Learning

Communities”

In this article published in the Guardian on May 23, 2012, authors Patrick Blessinger and Olga Kovbasyuk assert that “universities must do more to help students develop as global citizens. Virtual global learning communities could be the answer.” They state that "conflicts and xenophobia that exist in the world suggest the inability of some

people to construct effective interactions."

http://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/blog/2012/may/23/global-virtual-learning-environments

#14 The Phobia List

Just for fun, check out this list of the many different types of phobias that are out there—including xenophobia. http://www.phobialist.com/#X-