dehumanization

[ dee-hyoo-muh-nahy-zey-shuhnor, often, -yoo- ]

noun

1. the act of regarding, representing, or treating a person or group as less than human:

   Dehumanization of the enemy is often what sustains the rationale for a war.

   Before trafficked humans are fully enslaved, they are drugged, tortured, and abused as part of the process of dehumanization.

2. the process of depriving a person or population of human qualities or attributes such as compassion, dignity, individuality, etc.:

   When science is not touched by a sense of moral values, it works—as it has done fairly consistently over the past century—toward a complete dehumanization of the social order.

Word History and Origins

Origin of dehumanization¹

dehumaniz(e) ( def ) + -ation ( def )

Example Sentences

Reactions to both events are driven by ignorance, disregard, and dehumanization of an underclass of people of color.

From The Daily Beast

If you look at every place where there was a mass dispossession, there was first a massive campaign of dehumanization.

From The Daily Beast

It meant challenging the deceit and dehumanization on both sides.

From The Daily Beast

I feel that dehumanization is the only way one can successfully abuse another.

From The Daily Beast

This most recent example of blatant dehumanization of the Ethiopian community must be addressed at the highest levels.

From The Daily Beast