"How many of you have ever stood up to defend an unpopular cause or person...and risked community disapproval or worse?"
Well, I have. I was a Freedom rider, I was in many civil rights marches, I worked on many committees to assist equal pay standards for Blacks and women, and alot more. That is how things change. We didn't analyze why some people hated Blacks or thought women were stupid. We simply brought attention to the problem and worked to persuade those who were open minded until we had convinced the majority.
You seem to think that by analyzing those who oppose something you will change them. There will always be people who will never change. Rather then spend hours analyzing these people on this forum, perhaps you could go out and work to convince those who are more open. Maybe even at the disapproval of the community?
We were having a similar discussion in another forum. We agreed that people need to be educated one on one and one at a time. That's a small, but important cog in the wheel of change.