Two young women of different ethnicities exercise outdoors.
As well-known Rabbi Nachman of Breslau once shared, “If you believe breaking is possible, believe fixing is possible.” Nearly 200 years after his passing, Rabbi Nachman’s words still ring true as a message of inspiration and encouragement for us as we continue to work towards a greater understanding of diverse perspectives (Katz, 2020). His statement guides us in our celebration of other diverse and unique perspectives and cultures every day of the year, but most widely recognized during the month of April.
With a formal national induction of Celebrate Diversity Month stemming back to 2004, we are encouraged to look at the differences and similarities surrounding us and to honor and recognize these factors. By doing so, we are hopeful to glean a greater understanding of one another, and to also gain a greater appreciation for humankind (Diversity, 2021).
During the month of April, and in honor of Celebrate Diversity Month, we can carry on the practice of encouraging the acknowledgement of our differences by engaging with facets of other cultures, perspectives, and lifestyles in significant ways. Below are a few suggestions from Voices-Visions.org (2020) that can open our eyes to new things in a fun way. You can do these things by yourself, with a family member, or even virtually with friends:
- Talk with someone from a different culture about the values and practices that they recognize
- Read a book, watch a movie, or catch a docu series that looks at different cultures, lifestyles, or topics from a multicultural lens
- Listen to a different type of music and learn a dance that goes along with it
- Try a food or new recipe that is native to a different culture
- Try to learn a new language via a free App or YouTube
Since most of us are spending more and more time at home these days, there has never been a better opportunity to give some of these ideas a try! You can also check out different ways to celebrate diversity this month on social media sites, with groups, pages, and messages created on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or, if your poetic side is looking for a chance to shine, you can write a 6 word poem on what diversity means to you and submit it to [email protected].
We hope you use this month as an opportunity to embrace all of the beauty that surrounds and makes each of us so wonderfully special. Always remember, as author and activist Maya Angelou once said, “. . . in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of that tapestry are equal in value no matter their color.”
References
2021 Diversity Holiday Calendar. Diversity Best Practices.(2020, November 11).https://www.diversitybestpractices.com/2021-diversity-holidays#april.
Celebrate Diversity Month. Celebrate Diversity Month:Voices & Visions.(2021).https://voices-visions.org/content/generalpage/celebrate-diversity-month.
Katz, Y. (2020, October 17). Top things you didn’t know ABOUT Rebbe Nachman of Breslov.https://breslov.org/who-is-rebbe-nachman/.
The Root. (2014, May 28). Maya Angelou’s Words That Spoke To All Our Lives. The Root.https://www.theroot.com/maya-angelou-s-words-that-spoke-to-all-our-lives-1790875890.
