Perspectives on Diversity and Culture- EDUC 6164

I talked to my sister, Jessica, who is a high school English teacher in Columbus, Ohio. She has worked at the school for ten years and when she started there was very little diversity and most of the kids were white and lived in the country. However, through the years as the district has changed they have gotten more kids of different races and they now have kids from over 50 different countries. She said in the beginning there was a lot of tension and fighting, but now the kids have adjusted and are more accepting. So her definition of diversity is her school. It is all different races and religion and values all being together and accepting of one another. Her definition of culture is everything that makes up a person.

I talked to a friend, Katie, who seven years ago adopted four children from Mexico. They are a white couple who already had two kids and adopted three girls and a boy ranging in age from 6 to 16. She said her definition of culture is what you decide it is. The older kids have more memories of Mexico and have chosen to keep some traditions, but have let others go. The younger two have said that is not their home anymore so why would they keep doing what they did there. She thinks each kid will continue to choose exactly what their culture will be. Her definition of diversity was knowing each person is different, but not having to verbalize it. There have been many times people have said "you must have adopted them" or "those can't be your kids, they are Mexican". She said these are very hurtful statements and she doesn't know why people have to state the obvious. 

I talked to a previous coworker, Lisa, whose ethnic background is Jamaican however she is very light skinned. She said she has been mistaken for Mexican or ask how she can be black when she is so white. She grew up in inner city Philadelphia and most of her school was African-American, but she said she never felt like she fit with any group. She said her definition of culture is our traditions. To her diversity is being aware that people come from all different backgrounds. Don't assume that the black person is from Africa or various stereotypes about different countries.   

Each person included parts about the definition of culture that we have learned in this class. Culture is everything about us. It is influenced by our childhood and our ethnic background and gender, but it is also influenced by our current experiences. Katie said culture is what we decide. She has seen her adopted children choose parts of their Mexican culture to keep, but also are integrating into the American culture. What was not included was how culture is also our lifestyle and gestures and parenting styles. When talking to other people about their definitions I realized how much our own experiences shapes our thinking and our definitions.