Running head: FINAL PROJECT

Final Project Amber Mendoza ETH/125 May 12, 2013 Patrice Jackson

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Final Project Diversity is defined by Websters dictionary as being composed of differing elements or the inclusion of different types of people (Mirriam Webster, 2013). Diversity is a building block of a well-rounded society. The lack of diversity in any given space limits the amount of possibilities that can be found in that environment. People and their differences are one of the best types of diversity that we can learn from since each person is unique in the way that they see the world and the possible solution to its problems. This simple truth took a while to realize especially considering that in my younger life I was the one adding the diversity of culture and color to my school and peer groups. Realizing that being different is not a trait to hide but one to embrace and try to share is the thing that I have learned through my life and this class. Diversity exists in a multitude of different facets. You can a diversified ecosystem or a diversified investment portfolio or a diversified population on a variety of different levels. Having a diversified ethnical or racial population is beneficial to the health of everything as small as a neighborhood or as large as the population of a country. One big factor that determines how diversified a country is and will be come is their immigration statistics. Which ethnicities are traveling to start lives in those countries and who are not will have long lasting implications on the infrastructure of that country for hundreds of years to come. In the United States since the late 1900s most of the immigrants that come into this country have come from Mexico and South American countries. This influx of nearly twice as many Hispanics than any other ethnic group has left a mark on our day to day lives as well help shape some of the most hot button issues in politics today. The trend in the past where immigration is concerned has been almost ridiculously simple to explain for the most part. The first settlers here that came from their own free will came due

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to persecution due to their religion; the others that followed did so because of persecution from a variety of reasons. This trend continued till the late 1900s when most of Europe and Asia had settled into a relative sense of peace and this caused a shift in the numbers. The continuing trend of Hispanic expansion into the great unknown of the United States seems completely probable since their economies and thriving gang and drug fueled violence seem to continue on in much the same state that they were over a decade ago. This continued growth of a Hispanic population within our boarder should eventually start to herald in an era of civil rights for the children of illegal immigrants who are in a purgatory like existence belonging neither to this country or their parents native countries. Legislation will continue to change and shape the way that immigrants are treated, profiled, hired, and fired much the same way that legislation did this during the civil rights movements of the eras past. In a society such as our diversity has greatly propelled it forward in many ways. Some of the greatest scientific advancements that have been achieved are done so because groups of men and women of different ethnicities and back grounds are place together to act as soundboards for one another. Having a national identity that is not finite but is ever changing allows that nation to focus on the present and how to better it rather than living in a past that was a certain way and focusing on how to keep it that way. The United States has a variety of different religions, ethnically based cuisines, moral compasses and schools of thought on any given subject. Having those options allow the people of this country to experience the world the way that few other countries do. Options are a blind mans sight and a wanderers salvation. Options allow you to find precisely where you belong in the world rather than allowing the world to dictate where you should be.

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Acceptance is a big issue that is being tackled very heavily within our boarders right now. The right of police officers to frisk a person without any sort of provocation or the right of officers to ask for immigration papers during a traffic stop based on the color of your skin is two examples that are currently being discussed nationally. How do you attain acceptance on a national or societal level has been asked as far back as our written histories can catalog. This question has many different answers and those answers depend greatly on the person answering. Personally the road to acceptance is found in education. Educating a child on how to treat people and what is and is not acceptable when dealing with members of the human race is the key to making a difference in this issue. A truth pretty universally acknowledged among the human race is that we are afraid of that which we cannot understand or explain. A child is afraid of the monsters in their closets because they have not learned that their clothes hanging in the closet and that night light plugged into the wall causes wicked shadow. Teach the child and the fear goes away. Society is very much a small child even though we have been on this planet for hundreds of years. We are still learning and fear will continue to plague our thought the way that monsters lurking in the shadows plague small children. Education does not always take place in a classroom which is evident in the fact that television and internet content is where most children and adult learn about a wide variety of subjects. Mass media serves a righteous purpose and when the content that it shows to the public is as diverse as the public its self we will be one step closer to acceptance. The mass media is well known for their lack of irradiating stereotypes in their programing. Hispanics are often cast as maids or lawn care worker and African American get cast as violent and the Caucasians are cast as uptight and afraid of anything that is not them. One

FINAL PROJECT of the places where real growth has been seen is in childrens programing across the board. In the last decade we have seen a surge in smart, diversified role models for children of various ages to look up to. On nickelodeon they have Dora the Explorer, Ni Hao, Kai Lan, and the Beat

Band which all promote ethnical diversity, understanding as well as encouraging gender equality (Nick Shows, 2013). Disney as a corporation has had a push for diversity in their programing both on television and in their movies. The movie the Princess and the Frog introduced the first non-Caucasian princess to the Disney Princess line of products. They also addressed diversity and acceptance in their movie Wreck it Ralph. Their programming on television continues this thought process with a variety of different teen based showed with ethnically diverse leads (Disney, 2013). The push for diversified children programing that pushes the children to understand and accept others based on how they behave rather than the way they look is a huge reason why the mass media is crucial to the progression of a society built on acceptance. We as a society have come a very long way in the last hundred years but there is still a long way to travel before rest is in our future. We still have fear and a general lack of understand to fight in order to ensure that the generations that come after us have a better chance at acceptance then we did. Teaching people to ask questions in order to understand others and their behavior is one small way to build a better future. What is normal for you is foreign to so many others and simply not taking for granted that they understand you and your culture is a great way to open a door to a conversation that educates people on person at time. If more people talked about their differences and the things that make them unique from an ethnical point of view the greater the collective understanding will become and acceptance will follow after.

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Works Cited
Disney. (2013, May 12). Retrieved from Disney.com: http://disney.com/ Nick Shows. (2013, May 12). Retrieved from Nickelodeon: www.nick.com Campbell Gibson, E. L. (2012, May 21). Historical Census Statistics on the Foreign-born Population of the United States: 1850-1990. Retrieved from U.S. Census Bureau Population Division: http://www.census.gov/population/www/documentation/twps0029/twps0029.html Mirriam Webster. (2013, May 12). Divesity . Retrieved from Merriam-Webster Online Dictonary: http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/diversity?show=0&t=1368406625