Cultural Diversity - Research Paper Example

? Cultural Diversity Your School This paper was prepared for the _______, taught by ________. This paper explores cultural diversity in our area and the ramifications it has. This is a reflection of an African American living in a culturally diverse society in these times, also a reflective exercise on culture, cultural identities, equality and self-identity. Cultural Diversity Racism eats the thread of society and it threatens to destabilize the stability of a society. Cultural diversity is one of the ways to address the need for education regarding prejudice among races. I believe that cultural diversity is one of the ways in which a society can be a success, especially in times where globalization is the trend. True, in our culturally diverse society, acceptance is easier compared to times before. Cultural diversity is here to stay. However, prejudice is hard to shake off. There are times though that even if the people are liberated and sophisticated enough, prejudice still kicks in. It may be a thoughtless remark or something not offending. It may even go unnoticed but then in one way or another, it makes an impact to the person being spoken to. This usually happens in schools where a child’s learning abilities are almost always being classified according to his race and this is probably the biggest racial concern in the community. According to Cohen (1998) “Members of a society can work together because they tend to share assumptions and have learned to focus on the same limited portion of a reality that would otherwise be too complex to comprehend or even conceive” which basically means that people tend to stick with people with their own cultures because they share the same similarities. Cohen also made it a point to say that the assumptions that the people have are learned, and it is like culture, it is taught by elders and other people around them. This means that an African American can actually fit in a Caucasian setup, if he was brought up with the Caucasian culture. Alexandria, VA has a diverse population. All races are represented and color is a part of life in this place. Growing up, I never really put an importance to race and color because it was so trivial. Seeing people from other races always seemed normal and this did not put any tinge of racial consciousness in me. Although the Caucasians are often outnumbering the other races (US Census Bureau), it is not very significant as to affect my beliefs in race and color as a child growing up. Since our community is a diverse one, all races and colors are treated the same way. I am an African American. As a kid, my family always made it sure that I never felt different than others. In school, I was never bullied for my race of color. Maybe because there were many kids in there that are my race, or perhaps there are just many kids that are like me: they just do not care about one’s cultural background or race. I believe other people are just like me as well. There were a lot of immigrants in school, or if they are not immigrants, children of immigrants. There are a lot of African Americans in there, that’s probably why I never felt any different from the other children in school. We had almost the same experiences as with Latinos and Asians among Caucasians. Nevertheless, our parents, teachers and other older people made sure that there were no racial divides. They saw to it that each of us were treated in the same way and we were not looked upon by race/color. There are a lot of African Americans in our community. The mayor in Alexandria, VA is actually African American. Also, there are a lot of groups that support us. They look out for news and for events that can promote our distinct culture in the society, they look out for our people and we help each other. They are like me: we have the same color, same hair, same priorities and observations. We understand each other therefore we lookout for each other. The society treats us well, that’s probably because we are integrated to the society long enough for the other to know us and not be threatened. Hearing stories from the older people made us kids appreciate what we have now. We are thankful for the rights that have been given to us and because of that, we, the children of the newer generation, have grown accustomed to the fact that we share the same rights as of the others and we are not different at all. This may be accounted for the generations that also grew up on those rights. Some people are not treated in the same way, and that is unfortunate. It was never perfect, though. This is not an ideal world. There are times that people’s prejudices would come to play. In school for example, there are teachers that would offer snide observations when the Latinos cannot answer questions. Like, they are implying that the Latinos cannot comprehend certain things. That is understandable because some Latinos are sometimes new immigrants and they can’t speak English quite well, and they may have to go to ESL classes. Same goes with some of my Asian classmates. According to the study of Stith-Williams and Haynes (2007), however, African Americans are most disproportionately represented in the classroom. This could be attributed to prejudice about blacks (racism), poverty, or the child itself. Fortunately, I have not experienced those, although others did. They are not necessarily my friends but sometimes, I feel for them because the teachers, maybe unknowingly, highlight their differences with the other kids. That is quite unfair because these people are newly transplanted and they do not know the ways and means that their new location has in store for them. It sometimes gets them into embarrassing situations and they do not know how to get out of it, which is just not good at all. Because of this, many minorities drop out, adding stigma to their race and culture (Stith-Williams and Haynes, 2007). This also contributes to their poverty, and then the cycle continues. That practice is culturally responsive at first, acknowledging other cultures that exist (Stith-Williams, 2009). It is actually a good practice, however, the educators and the support systems should be aware that they are in the position of power and they should be aware of their actions. Diversity should be valued at all times. I have friends who are Caucasians and Latinos. I know a lot more in the world because of them, especially when it comes to traditions and all. Although their traditions are sometimes more rooted in their religion, it is also connected to their cultures and races. For example, the Jews celebrate Hanukkah or practice eating only kosher dishes. I understand them better now because I am exposed to them. Before, I may have judged them but being with them, I appreciated them more. It is good that our school books before, especially in English classes, have different races featured in stories. Not only it is educational in terms of cognitive values, it is also educational in terms of making the students aware that there are other kinds of people out there and they have to be tolerant of other people’s cultures and differences. These stories in these books tell the readers that there are other cultures, people, and they are the same as others too. There are other stories in school books too that highlight other culture’s folk stories. They help me appreciate their culture, and even my ancestor’s culture too because there are African stories that are presented in some of the textbooks. However, it makes me think that sometimes, the diversity in literature highlights the differences in students too because the students would know that their culture is different from the others and these students highlight the differences. This is actually helpful in avoiding cultural blindness, which can be destructive in setting a person’s sense of individuality when it comes to their cultural identity (Stith-Williams and Haynes, 2007). As I have previously mentioned, there are a lot of African Americans in our community. Not to say that the community is saturated with African Americans, but there are a lot of us in the society that can make a significant impact. In the field of media, there is a magazine that is made for the African American, by an African American. The The Light Magazine is one of those. It is one of the leading African American newspapers in the area, although it folded up last year (I presume it would publish again this year). For me, this is an icon in our community. With this company, we are inspired that we can be successful, and that success does not depend on race and color and the like. Their magazines have shaped the minds of the people of read them, including our family. They constantly lift up the sensibilities of the people who read it, and of course, the major readers of the newspaper are African Americans. For our family, this newspaper is very handy as it helps us be motivated in terms of living in our community and in helping other people. I am sure that other families also think this way and this newspaper surely has influenced a lot of families. This also paints the power of the media on their audience. There are other media outlets in the community, and this is just a part of it. There are also Latin media, and of course, no one can deny the power of the new media like the internet. TV also matters in cultural diversity. TV shows that feature racial minorities are gaining a lot of support now, maybe because that most of the audiences are of color too, hence the unwavering support of the audience. The mayor in our community, Mayor Bill Euille is African American and this makes a huge impact in our community. He was the first African American to be elected in that high a position. This indicates that the population in this community has reached the point where they do not see color as a different factor when choosing a leader. He was an accountant and he was a very successful one. His success in his work proved to be the ticket for his role as a community administrator, and this success was seen by the people and they like what they see. This is a sign that the community has surpassed the prejudice about color which is good. This is also reflected nationally as we also have a black president now. This makes me think, as an African American, that the minority groups in our community are represented well since the mayor is also a part of the minority. True, the town is culturally diverse but statistically speaking, with only 20% in the population, the African Americans are still part of the minority, as with other races. This makes him also knowledgeable in the issues concerning the minority. Of course, as a leader, he would not only think of one race or culture but of all cultures and races. I would like to think that these issues are not only addressing issues for a specific race, but also for other races and for people who are of mixed races too. Scientists say that in the future, the population of America would be overrun by coloreds, which is a far cry from today’s demographic which features the Caucasians as the dominant group in the racial pie. There are a lot of researching facilities in the state that follow the findings in cultural diversity and help the people integrate as well. An example of this is the Ethnic and Cultural Diversity committee of the American Planning Association. Like religion, cultural diversity brings people together. It is ironic, because diversity signifies differences. But these differences make the society better because we learn more from others and we are more educated because of the experience with the other cultures. This is actually one of the best aspects of cultural diversity. With me, I know more of other people’s cultures and the like. I know how to be more tolerant and I know how to behave well, especially in the context of their culture. This also has made me into an adaptable person. However, inequalities would continue to exist. There would always be inequality and one way to solve that is through education. I think educating people would get rid of their prejudices and would enlighten them of what’s right and proper. Exposure to other cultures would also make them understand these people better and would make them more tolerant people, and racism would be quashed. There are organizations such as Artists Against Racism which advocates the basic human right of equality. If people knew the right information and they experience it, there would be no miscommunication and everyone would understand each other. Also, avoiding stereotyping really helps and it would be better if the whole community were involved. References: Cohen, M. N. (1998). Culture Of Intolerance:Chauvinism, Class, And Racism In The United States. New Haven: Yale University Press. Mayor and City Council of Alexandria Virginia, Web: http://alexandriava.gov/Council Stith-Williams, V. (2009). The Significance of Cultural Competence & Culturally Responsive Practices in Education. Retrieved May 26, 2011: www.doe.virginia.gov/special_ed/tech_asst.../cultural_competency.ppt Stith-Williams, V. and Haynes, P.L.M. (2007). For Cultural Competence: Knowledge, Skills and Dispositions Needed to Embrace Diversity. Retrieved May 26, 2011: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/special_ed/tech_asst_prof_dev/self_assessment/disproportionality/cultural_competence_manual.pdf US Census Bureau, 2009 Web: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/51000.html Read More