This swastika is on a house in Jamalpur, Bihar, India, writes the photographer. The swastika is an ancient symbol representing permanent spiritual victory.
The photojournalist continues, "I have seen so many swastikas here in India - on temples, houses, shops, rickshaws and in random, unexpected places - that they just seem very commonplace to me now. This is very far from the shocking reaction that the symbol often receives in the West, due to the history of its abuse there. That negative perception is absolutely absent from people's minds here. The swastika here represents goodness, righteousness, truth, purpose and divinity."
Somehow your teacher is going to leap from the swastika to ethnocentrism.
Ethnocentrism is the tendency to believe that one's ethnic or cultural group is centrally important, and that all other groups are measured in relation to one's own.
People of the following nations are known for their ethnocentrism:
Americans
French
Italians
Russians
Chinese
One form of ethnocentrism is nationalism. A certain amount of nationalism is considered healthy. Radical nationalism may be barbarous.
When Americans judge the swastika to be a symbol of evil Nazi corruption, are they being ethnocentric? No. They're simply showing their lack of education.
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