Candy Kee
There are times in life when the question of knowing if one can think differently than one thinks,
and perceive differently than one sees is absolutely necessary if one is to go on looking and reflecting at all. ~ Michel Foucault
It is very sad that we cannot embrace and accept diversity in gender, class and color as the spice of life. Differences in people do not reflect disability. We are all created equal, however, we as humans create the tension and assign disability when it comes to diversity.
I really never entertained diversity as much as I have during this class. In the past when I thought of diversity, my mind raced down the differences in color path. This is obvious diversity but there again I was seeing a cover and not content. Diversity, I have found during the readings comes in all shapes, colors and sizes and ability level. Diversity is color of course but its also gender, religion, education, background, jobs, grades, health, wealth, hair color, height, sports related, vernacular, location, likes, dislikes, age, ability, talent, skills and the list goes on. We are all different in many ways. Now that I have started to think about it even more it also includes marital status and sex orientation. All people of a certain group tend to cling together in a clique. They influence each other in many ways to be close minded and tight knit and not accept others. A good example would be in our county we have the Country Club people and then the others. I am one of the others. One can feel immediate tension when grouped with people of another clique. It is hard to break into the circle.
I am reminded about a situation in a small country community I live close to. In this community we have a couple of service stations with a grill inside. For the past 25 years, Jerry's Mini Mart has been the most popular and people meet and eat there everyday. This is a clique and is predominately white. The customers are farmers, builders, retirees, hunters and such. The food is down home and delicious and business booms. Jerry decided suddenly after 25 years that he wanted to sell the place and do something different. To everyone's disgruntled dismay, he sold the place to what is commonly referred to as a "Blue Dot Indian". Oh know!!! Everyones little world crashed. They cannot perceive or think outside their little community box. They boycotted this place and it no longer is the place to meet and eat. One could cut the tension in the community with a knife. Many of the regulars no longer speak to Jerry. He betrayed them. The community has discontinued thriving. This is unfortunate.
Diversity is a key driver to development, growth and making the world a better place for everyone. Societies with little diversity are rarely economically and educationally developed.
Little do these people know about what the knew owners diversity can bring to the table. They see a cover and not content. I appreciate my eyes being opened more to our diverse world in taking this class. I shall try to be more cognizant of diversity in our world and more embracing. Oh yea, one more thing, I still go to Jerry's Mini Mart. My hope is that I can become a better person by perceiving and thinking of what I cannot.