Diversity is in our nature.
Gaddiel,
Great point you made. Diversity is part of human nature. Being different is what makes every human unique. However, some might argue that being different is also what keeps us apart. When I was looking at different perspectives I came upon one source that mentioned this issue. Quoting that source “we avoid others who are different, we tend not to learn about them. And when we don’t really know what people are like, it is easy to make guesses, fill in the blanks, or make generalizations about “them” based on very limited knowledge.” These generalizations can then lead to conflict. Humans avoid people who they believe are different, and as a result won’t get to know them and learn any differently. And as you said “diversity is part of nature”, so couldn’t you then say that humans are destined for conflict because of our differences?
Source: http://www.un.org/Pubs/CyberSchoolBus/discrim/id_8_ud_race.asp
Ariana, this is actually a great point and very interesting question you ask at the end. To answer it, we have to assess why every human is different. Is it so conflict arises? I believe the answer to that is no. The fact that we are diverse is so that we live in a world of variety. That is my belief at least. I feel that to make conflict out of diversity is something that is totally human-caused. Many of us choose to see our differences as a separation, but is that was it really is? Our differences are a way for us to not be so enclosed to one point of view or one way of life, but to open our minds to the possibilities and differences in our world. It can even be argue that differences are here to bring us together. We are a curious species and want to know more about one another. Therefore, having so much diversity in so much diversity in sex and gender, race, diet, morality and norms, political views, religious beliefs, cognition and perceptions could be seen as a way for us to seek out and learn from one another. In the link you shared, things such as prejudice, social groups and stereotypes are discussed. All of these are things that we cause. We have to be able to not be prejudice and not stereotype, otherwise we are failing to see diversity as a way to unite us and choosing to see it as a separation. In response to Taha, I do agree with you that education has something to do with. This could tie in to Ariana’s point about how we often make generalisations that lead to conflict. Education could help to get rid of such prejudice generalisations as we can be made to be more understanding and accepting from a young age. In my opinion, it is ignorance that drives us to make such generalisations.
Gaddiel,
I definitely agree with you. If everyone in this world were the same, what sort of world would it be worth living? One could also say that our differences are what allows us to make friends and acquaintances. We are all different, we come from different nationalities, we like different things, and we have different beliefs, but it is our interaction with others and finding people that share similar beliefs that brings us together.
I believe that Education is the most important step to take to decrease these generalizations. When you learn about other groups and can really interact with different people from those groups it becomes impossible to make generalizations. I agree, it really is ignorance that leads humans to make these generalizations about groups of people. However, as Karoline mentioned in response to my blog post, "Can you ask people to be openminded and undertsanding when they don’t have a job to provide food for tomorrow?" She raises a really good point, it is impossible to educate people if we don't first create at a least a semblance of equality.
