Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

        She is a Chinese student in her early twenties. She likes reading that involves all area of subjects. She speaks Chinese and English. When we discuss something, her outstanding thought and insight always astonish me. I chose her to give me the definition of the culture and diversity. She said, “okay, in my opinion, culture is something that a group of people who dwell together for a certain period of time develop or possess together that something can cover every aspect of human life, language, art, science, philosophy, architecture, etc. and diversity is something to describe a status among a group of people, which have multiple types of backgrounds, customs, belief, etc., so that means the essential of diversity is difference, difference in every aspect of human life and mind.”
        He is an American in his later fifties. He likes reading especially in history. His interesting is the first centurial history of German. He speaks English and German. I am starting learn him, and that’s the reason I chose him to give me his definition of culture and diversity. He told me the diversity and culture are something related the workforce, a fascinating culture mix to the workplace. For example, Asian, Hispanic, and African American is becoming the majority employees in the hospitality industry. America is the most diversity country (related the workforce) in the world. That is the culture of America.
       He is an American in his later sixties. He is a Christian ministration involve Chinese students and visiting scholars.  He speaks English. He is the leader and teacher of my bible study group.  When I asked what his definition of culture and diversity is, he told me, “Culture is the common understanding within a community of relationship and accepted norms. Diversity is the identifiable differences among people based on culture and ethnic background”.
       Janet Gonzalez-Mena said, “Culture is a set of unconscious rules that govern everything" (Laureate Education, 2011)
       Culture is how a group of people lives. “Artifacts, costumes, foods, holidays, language, values, extended family relationship, migration, work, housing arrangements, community connection, intergenerational relationships, ideas about education, recreation, health care, gender roles, role of children, religion, showing emotion, and historic event are elements of culture "(Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).
       The word of culture I heard the first time was from my mom when I was a teenager, I believe. When an issue came out in our community, people did not do things correct in the sight of our society, my mom would criticize and say “they did not have a culture”. My understanding from my mom was the people did not have common knowledge to do things right. They did not know what they suppose do according to the common understanding of the society.  Culture is common sense of knowledge for how people live within a sociality or a country.
       The word “diversity” I first heard was from our company’s orientation training in 2007. The activity still remains in my mind. The new employees were divided to groups. 4 people were assigned in each group. 3 people were labeled as red and 1 was labeled green. The red members were told they could use any way to forbid the green member entering their circle. The green member was told (s)he might use any way to get in the red circle. If the green member successes enter the red people’s circle, then green win. Otherwise, lose. The time was 10 min. After the game or activity was over. There were winning and losing. For the losing groups, nobody felt happy. The red members (I was one among three) felt we were not nice to the green people, even we were winner. We were told by the green that she felt rejected, not acceptable, very sad. In the activity, the red and green represent the diversity in the group. Diversity is the difference among groups people based on their cutlure.