Real diversity is about commonality

In doing the Education for Future course, I am becoming more aware of the notion of "multiculturalism". Multiculturalism seems to be about recognizing the presence of many cultures, their richness, the issues that have existed in how one dominant culture (the white one in the United States) ignores and dismisses the rights and ways of living of another culture. In the broadest sense, multiculturalism is not just about recognizing people of different ethnicities but also of different genders, sexual orientations, colors and so on.

As I read more about multiculturalism on the class blog this week, I was struck by the deeply divisive nature of how we are thinking about people of different backgrounds and choices. Most commonly compassionate and caring actions of being more aware of diversity starts by recognizing differences amongst people, understanding the differences and then accepting the differences and the people that bear them. This very first step is broken in a fundamental way. The very act of recognizing differences is rooted in labeling the differences and seeing that someone is different from ones own self. There and then, a divide has been created. Another being has been seen as being different and separate from you. Such a divisive start cannot lead to true understanding and acceptance. All it does is take us down the path of then intellectually seeing the differences, being 'okay' with them, and then intellectually accepting people. The whole process is so intellectual and so differences oriented.

Real understanding of cultural diversity cannot come from seeing differences. When we see differences, we see people as being unlike us. We create a sense of separateness. Our current culturally sensitive approach then demands that we understand this separateness, that we understand the differences and then come to accept them. But, what would happen if we never started with the differences at all? What if we never started by seeing someone as being of a different color, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, on and on? What if we never had these buckets and categories at all? What if we never labeled, categorized, compartmentalized at all? Then perhaps, we wouldn't need to work through the categorization and the judgments it brings about. We could perhaps find another way of seeing people.

We have to stop seeing the differences. Seeing differences leads to divisions. We need to see people as people, just who they are 'being', not what they seem to want to be, not what they want to become, not what they appear to be, not any of that. Can we just see what is 'real' and factual about them? If we see what is real, functional and factual, it is hard to judge it. It is what it is. How can you fight that? What are most people and living beings anyway? We all breathe, eat, shit, have sex and have the same emotions of wanting love, care, feeling safe and living meaningfully. All our actions are tied to these basic needs. Nothing else. So, can we go past all the color creed chaos and see just this in people and how it is no different from what we ourselves want? Can we see the commonality and not the diversity?

Seeing the commonality alone can lead to real compassion and care. Seeing diversity leads to divisions, no matter how hard to try. Do you see what I am saying or are you busy judging what I am saying? Just see it, for what it is. Forget what you've been told. Read this and see if it hits your gut. Then, lets talk about it.

With lots of love for us all,
anoo