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Showing posts from May, 2011

In Praise of Diversity

I grew up in Harlem during a time when my community was made up almost totally of African Americans. As a young child, the only people of other races I saw on a regular basis were a few teachers who taught at the elementary and junior high school, the police, firemen, insurance man, and the people who owned the stores and those who worked in the stores along 125 th St.; Nonetheless, there were times when we would go on school outings to the dental school in midtown, or to the museums.  As a teenager and a young adult I ventured into other communities, Little Italy, Chinatown, East Harlem.  As an adult I have traveled widely. I believe I have greatly benefited from learning about other cultures. The foods, music, dance have become part of me and, I believe, have made me a more well- rounded person. Living in a society or a community where all people are the same gives us a myopic point of view especially when we aren’t even interested in learning other cultures.  Someone once said th