‘Want to know about guilt by association fallacy and how it relates to bullying? Here, we explain what it is and how it sets many people up for bullying.
Guilt by association fallacy traps many innocent people in a quagmire of bullying and abuse. These victims may have had a family member or close friend who were bullied and now, others wish to abuse their loved ones too.
Moreover, maybe the associate committed a crime in the past and people treat innocent family members and friends like they were the ones who made the transgression.
Therefore, in this post, you will learn all about guilt by association fallacy and how it relates to bullying and abuse.
Once you learn all about this social issue, you will be able to call it out if it happens to you. Moreover, you’ll also recognize it if you see it happen to someone else.
What is guilt by association fallacy?
It is a phenomenon that happens when people unfairly judge a person based on their relationship or association with a demonized individual or group rather than their own behavior. Here’s how it works.
Understand that to achieve their goals to isolate the target, bullies will threaten and punish anyone they see having anything to do with the target.
Nobody wants to be ostracized. Nothing wrong with that. However, when bullies slander you and friends turn against you so easily, it speaks volumes about the kinds of people they (your friends) are.
And sadly, very few people have the sack to stand up to bullies. It stinks, but it’s the gospel truth.
Most people will do anything- and I mean anything to keep from being socially isolated. Most will even turn their backs on their closest friends.
Ask Yourself these questions:
However, understand this. Anybody who claims to be your friend but doesn’t have your back is not your friend! And when it comes to your bullies, you must ask yourself these questions:
- Who are they (the bullies and anyone else) to set standards for you?
- Who are they to tell you what standards you should live up to?
- Who are they to tell you to change?
- Who are they to tell you how to dress, how to act, and how to live?
- What authority do they have to make any rules that you should follow?
- Who died and made them the authority over you?
- What authority do they have to tell everyone else who to associate with and who not to?
Therefore, if you’re a victim of bullying whom everyone has abandoned because the bullies have influenced them to do so, you must also ask yourself this question:
- Would I want to be friends or associate with a bunch of pathetic wimps who are so weak and spineless?
- Why should I have anything to do with people who’ll bow down to pacify a bunch of bullies?
- Do I even want to associate with anyone who’s too chicken to stand behind me?
Guilt by Association Fallacy:
Anyone who doesn’t stand with you and turns on you so quickly never had any sack, to begin with.
They were never even worth knowing. Because they only proved to you that they’re worthless and can never be trusted. Therefore, you don’t want a bunch of wimps for friends.
I know it hurts when someone you thought so highly of suddenly throws you under the bus!Believe me, I’ve been there. Betrayal by those you thought were friends is the most painful when others target you for bullying.
However, as painful as it is, you need to realize that not everyone is worth your time. Not everyone deserves your friendship.
Therefore, when people turn against you, understand that it’s only the trash taking itself out!
What you want are strong and brave friends- friends with substance! You want pals with the cajones to have your back and tell the bullies to go take a long walk off a short pier!
Great friends are hard to find. Because the strong and true are few in this world.
Most people really are a bunch of bagless, weak-kneed wusses. Just as a girl must kiss many frogs to find a prince who’s worthy of her love, a target of bullying must weed through a bunch of wusses to find people who are worthy of their friendship.
Guilt by Association Fallacy:
You must raise your standards and expectations.
You must be very selective of who you allow in your life. Selectiveness is a great thing because it shows that you value yourself. Moreover, it shows that you won’t settle for anything less than what you want!
In other words, you must put a proverbial price tag on yourself and make sure it isn’t too low! Only then will people respect you.
For others to value you, you must first value yourself! And that means loving yourself enough to walk away from people who are worthless to you (i.e., the fake friends who betray you).
Examples of Guilt by Association Fallacy:
I hear stories all the time from people who have a ne’er do well brother. Or, maybe they have an uncle who’s the town drunk, or a sister who’s notorious for being promiscuous.
However, whether your dad did a stint in prison, or your mom is perceived by others to be the town nut-job, know that these are things you have no control over. Therefore, those uncontrollable things are not your responsibility.
Know that you aren’t defined by the lousy choices or unfortunate circumstances of a few friends or relatives.
Yes, I know that the judgement people heap on top of you hurts and hurts terribly. However, I want you to know that you’re an innocent person in all of it. You’re an individual and you shouldn’t feel ashamed of anything because you’ve done nothing wrong.
Realize that humans have a bad habit of lumping people into categories, whether justly or unjustly. Moreover, they’re wrong for painting you with a negative brush based on bad choices a few of your family members made.
What if you’re being bullied based on the behavior of someone close to you?
Understand that people also do this with different races and ethnic groups as well. It seems that many automatically think that all Blacks are thugs, all Whites are racist, all Native Americans are savages, all Hispanics are illegals and so forth.
Yes, I’ve heard all the above statements throughout high school, in a few workplaces, even in the news media and it’s all garbage! We should all know that none of it is true.
There are some of the greatest, loving, and most tenderhearted people in every race. In other words, there are many who don’t live up to the ignorant stereotypes that society likes to hoist upon them.
Guilt by Association Fallacy:
Do these people really know you?
Therefore, you must know that anyone who puts you in a category with a few bad apples, or people who’ve simply made bad choices, doesn’t know the individual you.
They do not know your heart nor your inner reality. And they don’t know what you think and feel.
Moreover, nobody can possibly know these things but you and God. And if they claim they do know, they’re only playing God by claiming to know the unknowable.
Realize that when people perceive you as someone you aren’t, their thoughts and opinions aren’t worthy of your consideration. Therefore, you shouldn’t place any value to them.
In fact, you should kick these people to the curb because they aren’t worth your time nor energy. You deserve people in your life who get you.
In other words, you deserve those who love you for you and the good you bring to this world. It’s time to ditch the weak bitches and wait for better people to find you.
Ditch the weak losers and be willing to be alone until quality people find you.
Mind you, this won’t be easy and it might even get lonely at times. However, if you’re going to be lonely, have a damn good reason for it. There’s nothing worse than hanging with fake friends who secretly wish you’d go away.
Why? Because when you’re around them, you’re just as lonely whether you realize it or not. You might as well be by yourself.
Therefore, be willing to wait. Ditch the losers who make you feel less than and be willing to be alone until better quality people come along. Know that you deserve better and go after it!
And, while you’re at it, know that you are not the labels others stick to you.
This post was all about Guilt by Association Fallacy so that you can recognize it when it happens to you or someone else. Also, so you can see how it connect to bullying.
1. How Does Bullying Affect the Victim’s Friendships?
2. Social Bullying Examples: 7 Reasons Bullies Destroy Relationships
3. Fake Friends: 13 Surefire Signs They Don’t Like You for You
4. The Horns Effect: Bully-Induced Bias Against Victims of Bullying