Prejudice-reducing legislation re-educates the masses after the fact rather than converting them in advance

Evidence

Allport recognized laws as a fundamental socializing agent that could have profound influence on attitudes. He argued that attitudes have to be changed to a certain degree to pass legislation, but “when the initial work has been done, then the legislation in turn becomes educative. The masses of people do not become converts in advance; rather they are converted by the fait accompli… . They allow themselves to be re-educated by the new norm that prevails” (p. 471). Thus Allport believed that sociocultural influences – from parental influence, to peer pressure, to laws – could both create and maintain prejudice and be a fundamental key to eliminating prejudice. — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 133

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the existing vault thread on contact theory and attitude change mechanisms — this is the legislation-as-socializing-agent strand of Allport that complements the contact hypothesis.
• ADDENDUM: Relevant to the prejudice-psychology thread on routes to attitude change beyond intergroup contact — legislation as an alternative sociocultural lever.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 133