For this assignment I
spoke with my mother who is a licensed practical counselor, my co-worker Tara
Frederick, and my friend April Flugence who is a realtor. I asked each of them
specifically what their definition of culture and diversity was. My mother stated,
“Culture and diversity a very unique topics and I believe that culture has to
do with traditions of family as well as religion. It is the clothes that we
wear, the food we eat, and the language we speak. Diversity is what makes us
different from one another; it’s our own unique qualities.” My co-worker Tara
explained, “Culture is a way of life….your way of life to be specific. It is
your beliefs, morals, and your perceptions of the world. Diversity is the
difference from one person to the next. It is different races, genders, and it
helps to separate us once we have been categorized within a group.” April stated, “Culture is understanding the
roles of family members and family traditions. It is important to understand
that what I may feel is normal in my family may be taboo in another. Diversity
is what make us who we are, why we laugh, what makes us smile or upsets, and
how we handle the world around us.”
After speaking with
them I have learned through these conversations and my course readings that we
all have the same base line understanding of culture and diversity but we each
pulled out our own examples. Some of us realized that the basics of food and
traditions while another realized that it has to do with our morals and beliefs.
I believe that this exercise helped me develop a better understanding of the
way we think as individuals when it comes to culture and diversity and no
aspects were omitted in any way. We have to be accepting of differences and
respect another person’s traditions, morals, beliefs and languages. My
co-worker Tara is the most culturally different from me because I am African
American and she is Native American, and I am married with a child on the way
and she is a single woman with no children. Although we are different in these
ways I felt more connected to her definitions of culture and diversity.
Kami,
ReplyDeleteI think you made an excellent point when you mentioned that many of us have similar definitions of diversity and culture, however, diversity and culture affect us in different ways. You described how something may be taboo to one person, but a way of life to another. I think it is so important for us to understand that people are likely to have perspectives that are different from our own, and that we must maintain an open mind regarding these differences.
Thanks for sharing!
Best,
Parker
I really like the response: "diversity makes us who we are"! I have been so caught up in culture making us who we are, but yet it makes perfect sense that our differences are as well. Culture and diversity compliment each other well.
ReplyDeleteHi Kami,
ReplyDeleteI like your mother's belief about culture when she said religion. Religion is important to because people do have different religious beliefs. The example about how you and your co-worker were culturally different but you felt connected is how I feel about my co-workers also. We are different but still the same in some ways. The co-workers who I work closely with are all African American but our views on family differ. Thanks for sharing.
Brenda
Hi Kami,
ReplyDeleteI liked this weeks blogs, it allows us to share what we have learned so far in our course with other individuals. It allows us to even further expand on our relationships and our overall understanding on culture and diversity. No one person has the same definition but we allow ourselves to become more knowledgeable. Thanks for sharing.
I enjoyed reading your post. The people I chose didn't feel comfortable for me sharing their personal information on the internet but I did have the pleasure of listening to some great stories. thanks for sharing
ReplyDelete