Diversity

Diversity is a big part of today’s society. But to understand diversity we have to know what it is. Diversity is where there are many different backgrounds, religion, and races. Ralph Bunch said “I have a deep seated bias against hate and intolerance. I have a bias against racial and religious bigotry. I have a bias against war, a bias for peace. I have a bias which leads me to believe no problem of human relations is ever insoluble.” This is true because diversity can help us understand so much.

One thing that bothers me a lot is that diversity is seen mostly a racial issue. Diversity is also age, religion, regions of the world/nation. Age is a big diversity. I sometimes feel as though I can’t relate to my grandmother because she doesn’t understand what I’m going through because when she was younger her society was different. But in reality, she does understand what I’m going through because even though we came from different time periods we still had the same problems growing up. Religion is another biggie. I feel I can’t relate to my friend Alan when we talk about what we believe in as a religion. He is Jewish and I’m Christian; there is a big difference and we have both chosen not to discuss it even though we really should. Diversity in regions of the world/nation is also important. My roommate Sandy Koselke and I grew up in two totally different backgrounds even though we don’t live quite three hours away from each other. She grew up surronded by wheatfields and country life; however, I grew up in the city where it was busy all the time. Diversity needs to be understood to have a better life.

To not let diversity get in the way of how society perceives one another we need to follow some guidelines. These guidelines were adapted from Raleigh Washington and Glen Kehrein in the book A Model for Reconcillation. First you must make the commitment to your relationship with others. To understand others diverstiy you must be willing to make a commitment to really listen to the person. Second, you must be sincere. If you are not sincere about truly trying to understand others than your wasting your time and somebody else’s. And finally, you must be willing to sacrife. You need to set aside what you belief to be true and open your eyes to what the other person is sharing with you.

Understanding and accepting diversity is one of the best gifts you can give yourself and the society.

Word Count: 432