UPDATED June 13th, 2018
So April is Diversity Month. Yay! But what does that mean?
The general idea is that we’re supposed to celebrate diversity. Diversity is defined by Webster’s as the state of being diverse, or of being different. Well, we’re all different for various reasons. But in the U.S. that’s not diverse enough. Diversity Month is a bit of a politically correct handout to minorities. It’s like this: let’s celebrate that you are Latino, or African-American, or gay. In other words, different than the average Anglo. Diversity, then, is supposed to be about celebrating who we are.
But is that a good thing? Should we celebrate the very differences that have caused so many of us to be discriminated against in the first place? Does celebrating our diversity drive greater wedges between different communities?
Most people think of the U.S. as a melting pot. But a melting pot means all the different ingredients (read minorities) melt into a single soup, or character. Diversity is about accepting and celebrating the fact that you and I are not the same. Personally, I think celebrating diversity is a great thing because it reinforces the idea that we do not have to blend together to be Americans.
Read Related: Celebrating Our Heritage, Pride & Bicultural Advantage
