Diversity Portfolio
Most people walk blindlessly through life, every day, oblivious to their surroundings. We are often so caught up in our own “world” (e.g. social life, work, bills, and stress), that we fail to realize what is happening within the “real world”. However, if we actually open our eyes and see the world through the lenses of other; we would not see things just as black and white, short or tall, peacefulness or chaos. We would see what I like to call, “chaotic beauty”. What I mean by that, is our society has become so diverse (e.g. ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, political views, and the spoken language), that it is being met with resistance, causing chaos and division among Americans. I feel this resistance is due in …show more content…
Fear, is the vehicle of chaos and the driver is the lack of knowledge and understanding of others. Most people fear what they do not know, which is understandable “we are only human”, but ignorance can be defeated with education.
I am not writing this paper as a political stance or from the perspective of a liberal or a conservative. I am writing this paper from the view point of a social worker who needed to come to grips with the reality of my own bias and assumptions of a group of people that I have never met. As I began to think about my own bias and issues surrounding diversity one population kept sticking out, which was the homeless. I wrote earlier about walking through life oblivious to the world around you, which I so clearly was with the homelessness issue in my community. I have been in this bubble, which clouded my vision, …show more content…
I noticed another person in need. Prior to stopping I felt a distain towards homeless people. However, after meeting Vicki I learned that not everyone is living on the streets because of bad choices or drugs, that some actually have nowhere else to go. I assumed that Vicki was either a deadbeat mom or a drug addict, because how could anyone allow their children to be in a situation like that. Her story really touched me, and made me realize that there is more than what meets the eye. Additionally, I learned that Vicki and I share a lot of commonalities, we are both parents, who would do anything to protect our children. This may seem trivial, but it is important to identify that Vicki and I also share the same ethnicity and we roughly around the same age. I say this is important because I do not think I would have stopped to check on a male living in his car by himself. As tough as that is for me to say, it is the honest truth. I felt more empathic to Vicki because she was a female and had children, mainly because she had children, which is something else I should be aware of in the future when working with clients. Vicki and I also had difference. I have a strong support group, where she did not. A support group (e.g. friends, family, and co-workers) can play an important role in times of stress and in times of need. I also have to ability as a man not to be fearful of being abused
Most people walk blindlessly through life, every day, oblivious to their surroundings. We are often so caught up in our own “world” (e.g. social life, work, bills, and stress), that we fail to realize what is happening within the “real world”. However, if we actually open our eyes and see the world through the lenses of other; we would not see things just as black and white, short or tall, peacefulness or chaos. We would see what I like to call, “chaotic beauty”. What I mean by that, is our society has become so diverse (e.g. ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, political views, and the spoken language), that it is being met with resistance, causing chaos and division among Americans. I feel this resistance is due in …show more content…
Fear, is the vehicle of chaos and the driver is the lack of knowledge and understanding of others. Most people fear what they do not know, which is understandable “we are only human”, but ignorance can be defeated with education.
I am not writing this paper as a political stance or from the perspective of a liberal or a conservative. I am writing this paper from the view point of a social worker who needed to come to grips with the reality of my own bias and assumptions of a group of people that I have never met. As I began to think about my own bias and issues surrounding diversity one population kept sticking out, which was the homeless. I wrote earlier about walking through life oblivious to the world around you, which I so clearly was with the homelessness issue in my community. I have been in this bubble, which clouded my vision, …show more content…
I noticed another person in need. Prior to stopping I felt a distain towards homeless people. However, after meeting Vicki I learned that not everyone is living on the streets because of bad choices or drugs, that some actually have nowhere else to go. I assumed that Vicki was either a deadbeat mom or a drug addict, because how could anyone allow their children to be in a situation like that. Her story really touched me, and made me realize that there is more than what meets the eye. Additionally, I learned that Vicki and I share a lot of commonalities, we are both parents, who would do anything to protect our children. This may seem trivial, but it is important to identify that Vicki and I also share the same ethnicity and we roughly around the same age. I say this is important because I do not think I would have stopped to check on a male living in his car by himself. As tough as that is for me to say, it is the honest truth. I felt more empathic to Vicki because she was a female and had children, mainly because she had children, which is something else I should be aware of in the future when working with clients. Vicki and I also had difference. I have a strong support group, where she did not. A support group (e.g. friends, family, and co-workers) can play an important role in times of stress and in times of need. I also have to ability as a man not to be fearful of being abused