Diversity Resistance (Part II)

Each of us has "unique" life experiences which determine our world view. From the time we arrived in this world we have been and still are part of numerous formal and informal cultures and sub cultures. As we assimilated into and/or traversed the various environments (communities, organizations, relationships, etc.) that have been or are a part of our lives, we have received conscious and unconscious imprints of, among other things, words, thoughts, attitudes, expectations and beliefs that are ingrained into the fabric of who we are. What we see in any situation and how we interpret it is a product of the imprinted layers that have formed the foundation of our world view. The latent layers of imprints and the affect they have on us become part of our blind spot and have an inordinate amount of control over us. This power is derived from our ignorance of our layered imprints which are an integral part of who are and what we do.

We only see what we can see and we don't know what we don't know. In this regard, many Diversity Resisters, those who have a cognitive understanding of the benefits of diversity but are not supportive of its integration into the fabric of the organization, are not aware of their obstruction. In fact, some have told me that being able to recognize their diversity blind spots helped them to identify traces of their own diversity resistance. Because our blind spots are part of our make up, any external assessment or scrutiny of them may be taken as a personal affront. The challenge, therefore, is to get people to recognize their blind spots without creating a defensive or adversarial environment. (to be continued)

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Lydia Espinosa Crafton,   New Market MD	03/07/04
Invisibility of diversity resistence
Marvin Johnson's comments on the need for each of us to cognitively explore the invisibile barriers embedded within our own cultural identity that creates resistance to diversity should be incorporated into the self-awareness (mindfulness)that is part of the practice of all mediators. More is needed on this subject. Add New Comment

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