Every family usually has a black sheep. Similarly amongst large groups of people who have a tendency for perpetrating evil there are usually some individuals who stand apart from the herd and usually engage in or promote goodness. As it it commonly said, there's always an exception to the rule.
I am from a tribe which has been tagged with a negative appellation for some unknown reason as being disliked such that there's an unsavoury saying that if you see someone from my tribe and you see a snake, it's better the person is dealt with first before engaging the snake. The meaning that can be read from this saying is that an individual from my tribe is more deadly than a snake. This saying used to be very prominent in social discourse but thankfully due to more sincere social interactions , the impression is gradually fading away from the society as the saying has largely been proven to be an unfair representation of my tribe.
I am also a Muslim, and unfortunately due to the negative actions of some extremists who claim to profess my faith, Islam is usually portrayed in bad light in the global media space. Often times when people get to know that I am a Muslim, they are like are you really sure you're one . I remember my father also telling us stories of people telling him he was too good to be a Muslim because of the kind treatment they received from him.
The reason for this is not far fetched. Muslims generally have been portrayed as being evil by the mainstream media due to the actions of the bad eggs amongst us. Hollywood too has not been very fair to Muslims in the way it has portrayed us. The reality is that every religion has its own fair share of extremists and the ones who claim to profess Islam rather ironically do not spare even Muslims particularly if one speaks out against them.
In some other climes , people of colour are usually viewed as the trouble makers or the unproductive members of the community due to the actions of some individuals who have chosen to run foul of the law. Hence people of colour in such communities who have chosen to be good citizens often have the task of first overcoming the bad image which has been painted about them by the actions of a few.
It is high time all this stereotyping of an entire race, group or religion stops as it is taking us nowhere rather it is slowing down the progress of the society at large. Let individuals who decide not to abide by law be treated as individuals and the entire group which they came from be spared of being treated as scape goats. As individuals we should relate with people with an open mind irrespective of what you may have heard of the tribe or group such persons come from. Some times the information may be half truths or often times totally false. This will go a long way is easing the racial or religious tensions that is tearing some societies apart. Let's bring down the walls of stereotyping as it is dividing us.