Every so often, words in our lexicon undergo an evolution. For instance, graveyards became
cemeteries which then became memorial parks, all while still designating the place where we bury the dead. Why the change? Sometimes terms like “graveyard” fall out of favor. While, technically, they still denote what we mean, we realize that these words fail to convey what’s at the heart of what we’re really trying to say, so we replace them. Thus, we no longer bury the dead in graveyards; we now lay our loved ones to rest in memorial parks. We see this word shift phenomenon occur in absolutely every area of society—politics, education, religion, economics, the military, so on and so forth. Overtime, we adjust words so that they better communicate what we actually mean. I submit that the word diversity is due for just such an adjustment.
When the word diversity first made its splash in the 1990s, it was during a time when our nation was grappling with some of the gaping disparities that exist within our society. At that time, advocating for diversity was a way of saying, “Hey, if things are ever going to be more equitable, we need to make a place at the table for different people who bring different perspectives.” Great idea in concept, but over time the idea of diversity morphed into something that its founders likely never intended.
Back in the 1990s, I was commissioned by an alumni group at Hampton University to write a play celebrating the school’s rich history. I was given access to countless historical documents. Of all the documents I reviewed, what stands out to me the most are two photographs. The first photograph shows a group of Native Americans students upon their arrival at, what was then, Hampton Institute. The second photograph is of that same group of students a year later. When the Native American students initially arrived at Hampton, they were adorned head to toe in attire fully representative of their culture. After only one year at Hampton, these same students looked quite different. Cropped haircuts replaced feather headdresses, suits replaced tribal blankets, hard leather shoes replaced the soft moccasins the students had worn just a year earlier. Although not as readily noticeable, what had also changed were their mindsets. The values that had been instilled in these Native American students gave way to something that would have been quite foreign to the tribal groups who had raised them. In short, they had completely assimilated, and what is unfortunate is that this complete assimilation was considered a success.
In large part, that’s where I believe we stand today as it relates to diversity. Too often, we accept people “at the table” to the extent that they strip away everything that makes them who they are. In doing so, we offer people acceptance in exchange for their authenticity. That is not diversity. Diversity is about bringing different perspectives into the mix with the aim of enriching the whole. When people give up who they are in order to belong, we lose something. In fact, we lose a lot. We lose the opportunity to grow and change. We lose the opportunity to be better individually and as a community. Ultimately, that’s a loss we all end up suffering.
