Distracting Diversity

Posting will be light for a few days, but I give you this gem from “Why Race, Class, and Gender Still Matter” by Margaret L. Andersen and Patricia Hill Collins to think about in the meantime:

Diversity initiatives hold that the diversity created by race, class, and gender differences are pleasing and important, both to individuals and to society as a whole – so important, in fact, that diversity should be celebrated. Under diversity initiatives, ethnic foods, costumes, customs, and festivals are celebrated, and students and employees receive diversity training to heighten their multicultural awareness. Diversity initiatives also advance a notion that, despite their differences, “people are really the same.” Under this view, the
diversity created by race, class, and gender, although worthy of appreciation, does not and should not affect how society functions.

Certainly, opening our awareness of distinct group experiences is important, but some approaches to diversity can erase the very real differences in power that race, class, and gender create.

  • How does this quotation apply to your organization’s diversity initiatives?
  • How does this quotation apply to your life?
  • What relevance does this quotation have for cultural festivals and/or multicultural festivals?
  • What might I be implying with the title of this post?