Appreciating Diversity

“Diversity is not about how we differ. Diversity is about embracing one another’s uniqueness.” – Ola Joseph.

Another word for diversity is "differences’, but these differences must not be inferior or superior to one other. Differences must not be seen as defects. A clear example of diversity that, in my opinion, defines this concept is prevalent at the University of Malta. Look around while you are having a nice cup of hot chocolate at quad or at the canteen and you will see people of various races, affiliations, personalities, interests, ethnic groups, cultures, religions and other different characteristics that must be seen as unique.

My personal view on the issue is that society’s major challenge regarding diversity is to be able to look at the world from the perspective of those who are different from us. Being a positive person, you can transform these differences into an opportunity to learn and educate yourself. As time goes by, the former suggests this is a rare occurrence when in fact it is quite common that our communities and schools are becoming increasingly diverse. This is seen every day; whether you are at school, at work or at the grocer. We do not realize that we socialize with individuals who come from different ethnic groups.

A few weeks ago I was speaking with a Canadian guy and the very next day we were eating at a Turkish take away and we purchased a Turkish shish kebab situated next to an Italian cafeteria’. Our class room has students coming from Canada, The United States, Sweden and ex-Yugoslavia. Such diverse circumstances provide different perspectives and enrich our lives. In order to function within this society, one must keep an open mind and a degree of respect towards other human beings. One also notices that we interact with individuals that are different from us every day.

The increasing demand of products coming from different continents and countries has given the people of the world a chance to embrace more cultural diversity. All we have to do to notice this appreciation towards diversity is to look around us to see that the majority of the food we eat everyday coming from different countries from all over the world. A personal experience that made me realize this concept was when I invited over my friends and we ate Chinese, Turkish, Arabic and Mexican food that I purchased from a local supermarket and ate on disposable plates coming from Malaysia.

Technology has also transformed our world into an electronic village were individuals from countries with different cultures are found more easily. One can also see technology as a regressive tool against diversity as hate groups on the web can promote their political agendas against illegal immigrants, against same sex couples, against people with different religious beliefs and other differences around us. One can also say that the internet brought the world closer together with diverse cultures to search and explore about.

Unfortunately not all children are raised in a diverse environment and so they assume that their culture, religious belief or their parents’ political opinion is superior to those who are different. This will cause ethnocentrism which eventually will lead to discrimination, interpersonal conflict and also wars between different groups of people

In my opinion children must be raised in a diverse environment where they could more appreciate these differences. For example in a class room when facing a problem it is better if the teacher assembles a diverse group where different ideas and opinions are distributed in order to solve the problem. Moreover this scenario creates an opportunity for children to educate themselves about various ideas coming from different cultures.

The battle to eliminate discrimination in our world and introduce diversity has been going on for centuries, there has been widespread opposition to slavery for example since the age of gladiators. A famous scholar who was assassinated due to his strong beliefs against racism is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. During a speech he was once quoted saying: “I have a dream that my four little children one day live in a nation where they will be not judged by their colour of their skin, but by the content of their character”. It is sad that we live in a world where we label every individual because his father or mother has a different skin colour or because a Muslim girl wears a hijab or because a teenage boy has affections towards another boy.

In my opinion it is time to start learning to understand, respect and appreciate the different people in our life. Take your time to love them and embrace their sacrifices even though they may come from different cultures. Do not forget the people you met on your road to success and start appreciating diversity as it will make the world a better place to live in.

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