DIVERSITY (POLITICS)

In the political arena, the term 'diversity' (or 'diverse') is used to describe political entities (neighborhoods, cities, nations, student bodies, etc.) with members who have identifiable differences (racial, religious, generational, etc.) in their backgrounds or lifestyles. Political creeds which support the idea diversity is valuable and desirable hold that recognizing and promoting these diverse cultures may aid communication between people of different backgrounds and lifestyles, leading to greater knowledge, understanding, and peaceful coexistence. For example, "Respect for Diversity" is one of the six principles of the Global Greens Charter, a manifesto subscribed to by Green parties from all over the world. In contrast to diversity, some political creeds promote cultural assimilation as the process to lead to these ends.
'Diversity' frequently encompasses differences in racial or ethnic classifications, age, gender, religion, philosophy, physical abilities, socioeconomic background, sexual orientation, gender identity, intelligence, mental health, physical health, genetic attributes, behavior, attractiveness, cultural values and politics.
This use of 'diversity' in this sense also extends to American academia, wherein an attempt to create a "diverse student body" typically supports the recruitment of students from historically excluded populations, such as students of African-American or Latina/o background as well as women in such historically underrepresented fields as the sciences.

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Criticism

See also

Criticism

Many critics of diversity claim that in the political arena, diversity is a code word for forcing people to tolerate or approve of people and practices they would normally ignore or oppose. Modern critics of diversity also suggest that bringing people together in a forced way often results in some breakdown of social cohesion, especially when the perception exists that diversity goals take precedence over quality in hiring, contracting, and/or academic admissions. Other critics point out that diversity programs in education and business inherently emphasize some minority groups and do not give equal time to other groups which lack the "disadvantaged" label. These critics claim that "pluralism" is a more accurate term for the presence of variation. See political correctness.

See also

★ Cultures

★ Diversity (business)

★ Ethnic groups

★ Gender identity

★ Generational diversity

★ Languages

★ Inclusion (disability rights)

★ Multi-culturalism

★ Neurology

★ Opinions

★ Physical features, especially if they are recognized by members of that population to constitute characteristics of a race - (''see also human variability'')

★ Religious beliefs

★ Sexuality

★ Socio-economic backgrounds

★ White privilege (sociology)