Color
Where is your color
Am I your friend
Your friend of color
Do I satisfy a need
Why must I be your person
Will you always run to me
Count them on your hand
One, two , three
How many white
How many like you
Where is your diversity
Color stays within
Color is discriminated
Color is not your icon
Color is not your hero
Where is your diversity
I am sick
I am tired
I am brown
A color different from you
I am a color
I am not your color
This is a poem that generated from my frustration of being in a classroom filled with Caucasian people. A comment was made that the U.S. is diverse. I made the comment that the U.S. is by far not as diverse as it should be. MOST of the CEOs are white males. In a predominately white in which I reside, I was the only person who was not Caucasian at my job. In my classes at my University, there are maybe 2 or 3 people out of 30 that are not Caucasian. Another person commented back saying, well I live here as well and I have a Korean friend, and an Indian friend. I replied, “OH so you have two” How can one person know about diversity by just being exposed to one or two people. Where is diversity?
Isn't the opportunity for diversity dependent on where you live? And I do mean opportuity. I count myself lucky for having lived in a culture where being white made me a minority, however, living where I do in UT, I would have to seek out diversity for diversity's sake... which seems like a lame way to decide on friendships. I would rather become friends with the person, not their ethnicity.
ReplyDeleteThe US is diverse in pockets, usually around major cities-- just as it is homogenous in other areas, usually more rural.... like Eastern WA? ;)
Give my love to your family!
Meg
That was exactly my point, this person was generalizing the whole entire country. I completely do not mind being friends with all kinds of people, it is just frustrating to be that person for someone who states, "I have 2 Indian friends" and I am part of that 2 and because of this, they justify themselves of being completely diversified. I barely know this person who was making these claims and I was bothered by it... :)
ReplyDeletegood poing mrs. bw :)
ReplyDeletein the place where i work with the township public works, i am the ONLY indian there working among all the 400 public service workers...when the mayor makes claims as a " diverse" community...i THINK what they sometimes call diverse is when a persons skin tones differ from others..am i coming to a point here or am i at the left side of the ball park?