Listening Diversity

A simple, and possibly the best, way to educate ourselves on those who are dying from a terminal cancer could be listening and asking questions when we do not know something about them or their condition rather than just assuming the answer. Listening to learn, understand, and empathize would prevent us from stereotyping, assuming differences/similarities, being prejudice, and simply just offending someone due to our ignorance when we speak to or about them. This is definitely a good approach to learning more about anyone who may differ from us, no matter the scenario. If we fail to adapt the way we communicate, and we are not aware of what we are saying and its possible impact on the other person(s) then we may create conflict within that relationship. It could possibly make people view us in a negative way just for the simple fact that we were not mindful of what we were saying. As long as we fail to adapt to others who may be different than us we will not be able to coexist peacefully.
As I opened my assigned diversity role, I immediately felt sad. This feeling carried on as I typed my paper. I had this constant feeling of hopelessness as I was working that I couldn’t seem to shake. I …show more content…
They aren’t all bald and look sickly. It is embarrassing to know I actually thought that before doing this assignment. If I saw someone who said they had cancer but looked like me, I probably would have assumed they were lying or being overdramatic. Before this assignment, I assumed all terminally ill cancer patients looked like the children in the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital commercials. I have found that this assumption is far from the truth. This assignment has definitely helped me become more educated and open to listen to those people going through this rather than just assuming that I already know what life is like for them based on what I have seen on television or what I imagine in my