Diversity starts with you and me

George Tan
Blue & White Flash / Staff Writer

What does diversity mean to you? It means more than different groups of people living in a region. To me, it is about that respect and mutual understanding of each other’s culture. I view diversity as a situation where people of different ethnic groups understand each other and interact in a harmonious way.

As an international student at Jackson State University, I look forward to seeing a more diversified campus. At Jackson State, there are students from more than 70 countries all over the world. Do you think this makes JSU a diversified campus? The student body is diverse, but there should be more interaction between American students and international students which promote mutual understanding and global awareness.

I’m from Malaysia and I’m glad I have chosen to study at an HBCU. I never regretted making the choice to leave my beloved country to study here. The cultural immersion has brought a whole new perspective of seeing things. It is true that we only start to learn more about our culture when we are away from our community/country. It is here that I started to learn to appreciate my heritage and culture. Meanwhile, I learned more about other cultures.

Cultural differences is something amazing. Some may view it as something bad which causes conflicts and arguments. Or you can choose to learn and resolve it. Only then can you view things in a whole new way since you can take care of your own culture and other’s cultures. By learning how to get along with people from different ethnic groups, you are on the journey to becoming a global citizen.

In most cases, people like to stereotype. I have to admit that stereotyping is somehow inevitable in life. We all have stereotypes about people, but we should learn to suppress the thoughts and make further communications before judging others.

For instance, I encountered some students on campus who think Asians are either Chinese, Japanese or Korean. In fact there are many countries in Asia except the three mentioned. I would love to talk to them and share my culture. Through this explanation of my culture, I would build valuable friendships with the students. In return, they could tell me more about their culture. I can’t graduate from an HBCU without knowing how to dance. And the rewarding part of my friendship with African-American students is that I learned some moves.

A friendship never begins unless you start talking to somebody. The same holds true for making friends with international students. You might see international students in groups, they are not trying to segregate from the American students. They just feel more comfortable sticking with people with similar backgrounds. But once you start talking to them, they will be happy to talk to you and become good friends.

I urge all my fellow American and International students to start talking and interacting. You’ll be surprised how much you can learn from each other.

Start your adventurous and exciting collegiate journey by talking to people from different backgrounds, it’s time to be global citizens! It starts with you and I.

The views expressed in the commentary are those of the writer(s) and in no way represent the views of The Blue & White Flash.