Personal Reflection on the Discovering of Diversity - Essay Example

?Diversity When I was very young my neighborhood was mostly of one race, although my grandmother lived in a much more mixed area. When shopping with her we would go into shops run by people from many different backgrounds and sometimes they would exchange greetings in a language I did not understand. In my school there were only a handful of pupils from other racial or cultural groups. Although there was a Chinese boy in my class, apart from his appearance he did not seem any different to other boys and he did not tell us anything about his life in China. Presumably he wanted to be included and did not want to appear different. Only when we saw him with his parents did we really notice that he was Chinese. There was also a Polish girl in some classes. She was proud of her background and even taught us Polish dances and songs. One of the teachers was Jewish and he took a group of us on a field trip to visit his synagogue so that we could learn more about Judaism and come to understand it better. At the time I didn’t think about deliberately mixing with those from other backgrounds. There didn’t seem any need. As time has gone by the whole city has become much more racially diverse. There are now people who racially originate in many different parts of the world, even if the people themselves were born here. This has been reflected in places where I worked. When I started work we were all from a similar background and I worked with three people I had been at school with. Later I worked alongside people born in the West Indies, Africa, China, Malta and those from Jewish, Christian, Sikh and Muslim backgrounds as well as those who would claim to have no religion at all. Nowadays children learn much more than we did about the world and realize that other groups may make positive contributions to life on earth. Some of this they learn at school Other things they learn from television, radio and the internet. I didn’t have many opportunities to learn about them when I grew up. Nowadays I have friends from Germany, South Africa and the West Indies as well as people from a similar background to myself. When I meet or work with someone from another background I am curious about them. People appreciate it when you are interested in them and want to listen to their stories. I invite people for meals and they can try my food. In turn I try to eat their food on occasions. Bias or prejudice are always present in the workplace as elsewhere. This can vary from jobs given to family members, even when they are not well qualified, rather than given to the person best suited. There is sexual unevenness. In the majority of cases men hold the highest positions and if a woman is in a managerial position she usually has to be very good indeed. People from diverse backgrounds may be at a disadvantage because English is not their first language, or because they obtained their qualifications at an institution not recognized here. All too often, although not in every case, white people with western European ancestry may be in positions of leadership and those whose ethnic origins are from further south hold lower positions, in some cases because of lack of educational opportunities. This tends to be a self perpetuating situation, although there are always individuals who personally, by their exceptional ability , manage to overcome such bias. Bias in the workplace is so common that it is seen as the norm. It is therefore very difficult to overcome. I would however support those, in trade unions and other organizations, who fight for such things as equal pay for women and jobs being given to those best suited for them , whatever their background. I would also support the idea of giving employment to those with physical handicaps where this is possible, and working towards making this possible. This could be by ensuring that that there is a toilet that can be accessed by a wheelchair user. Larger employers or local authorities should support creches so that mothers, especially single mothers, can work knowing that their children are in good care and can be easily reached in an emergency. I don’t think particular jobs should, in the vast majority of cases, be reserved for those from a particular diverse background e.g. gay, Latino, black or disabled. At the same time if human resource staff are doing their jobs in a fair and unprejudiced way, then these people should be able to obtain employment based upon their fitness for the post and their qualifications and past experience, especially in larger organizations. It would be unfair to refuse to employ someone because they are gay or black, as this is highly unlikely to make any difference to their ability to do a particular job. On the other hand someone who has difficulty with the language required, or who has got a physical difficulty, might need extra support. This does not necessarily mean that they are unemployable, simply that some changes might be required. A nurse who trained in the Philippines for instance, may have to take a job as an aide until she is more fluent in the language and fully conversant with the way things are done in her new place of employment. This may well involve both further training and assessment. What can I do to expand my personal understanding of diversity? This could be something as simple as getting to know my neighbors better, eating at a restaurant where the food comes from another culture. I could join an organization that is open to people from diverse backgrounds - an amateur theatre group, a charity that runs a soup kitchen etc. I could visit a place of worship different from my own simply to see what things are different and what are the same. I could make a deliberate effort at work to speak in a friendly way with new people whatever their background instead of always chatting with the same familiar people each day, perhaps sitting with them for lunch breaks or inviting them to join us. I could try to learn another language, and the easiest way of doing this is not from books or tapes, although these can help, but by talking with people for whom it is a first language. I would also then learn more about their culture, one apparently quite different to my own. Read More