PERSPECTIVES ON DIVERSITY AND CULTURE

Incidentally, I had an appointment this past week with a new physician and it surprised me that at the top of the page of a packet of forms that I needed to fill out, the first four questions asked of me were, “What is your race?  What is your language?  What is your ethnicity? And what is your date of birth?”  I have to admit that my first reaction was indignation.  I wondered what difference my race and ethnicity had to do with anything.  My second reaction was to think how coincidental it was that I happened to be studying these very things in this course of study.  Prior to my studies I would have probably not known how to answer the questions since race and ethnicity have had synonymous meanings to me.  Since that encounter, I’ve embarked upon my own quest to learn how others perceive similar terms.  The answers I received included much Surface Culture, which is the visible differences of a person, and very little Deep Culture relating to the family traditions, intergenerational relationships, family roles and values (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). Some of the key aspects that were omitted were the distinction between race (arbitrarily characterized by outward details such as skin color and physical features), ethnicity (relating to a group which is characterized by shared heritage and distinctiveness),  and culture (a distinctive way of life) (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). As I reflected on other people’s definitions of culture and diversity, I didn’t feel as bad about my own ignorance, as it seemed common-place for many people to not know about the deep culture of their own family history.  Perhaps that is why building family trees using online software programs has become such a popular activity—people are starting to get a little bit curious about who they really are.  Take a look at what some folks say about diversity and culture.  

WHAT IS CULTURE? WHAT IS DIVERSITY?

(In order to maintain confidentiality I’ve only used last names and signified male or female)

Smith (F) – I don’t know what culture is, I don’t even know my own.  I guess I could be Indian, Caucasian, Black, and something else.  I have so many things mixed up in me that I don’t even know which one to identify with or call my own.  As far as diversity, I would say that it is a melting pot where everything gets mixed up so that it is hard to determine—I don’t like Indian food, I don’t fit in with Caucasians, I guess I’m Black.

Moore (F) – I would say that my culture is black and Indian; I think my father had some Indian in him  and some on my mother’s side too I think.  As far as diversity, I would say that it is what our ancestors practiced and the legacy from generation to generation—diversity is when something is different—the differences between cultures.

Channey (M) – I would say culture is where you come from or what you have in your blood; I would have Black and Irish in me since my mom had Irish/White in her and I think my dad was Black.  Diversity is the differences between people like their eyes, hair, skin, etc. 

Reference

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).