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Diversity And Human Rights Essay: Diversity And Human Rights

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Diversity and Human Rights Essay When I hear the words culture and diversity there are many things that come to mind. Growing up I lived in a diverse neighborhood, went to very diverse schools', kindergarten through high school, and I went to church groups that eventually lead to me getting the opportunity to experience a whole new country and culture during my mission trip. All of these things have contributed to my knowledge and appreciation of the diversity and culture in my life. Learning about these things has helped me keep an open mind about the humans that surround me every day. It has also helped me to become more aware of human rights and the way it has affected our world and our culture. I was born into a house that happened to …show more content…

The school was the second largest in the state with around 2,600 students and was located in a very diverse area. The schools main goal was to teach us about diversity. One aspect that stood out to me was school dances. At our school, each dance was themed as if we were in a different destination surrounded by a different culture. For example, my senior prom was themed "A Night in Paris." The venue was decorated as if we were standing right next to the Eiffel Tower and they served crepes for dessert. My all-time favorite event was the annual multicultural assembly. The assembly always started with a flag parade where students from all different countries lined the gymnasium floor holding the flag from their country. This was a school wide assembly that allowed students to represent their culture by performing an act of their culture such as dancing, singing, and many other activities. This was always my favorite day of every year because it really showed how diverse our school community was. I feel as if I learned a lot about the meaning of diversity through this experience in my high …show more content…

I traveled with a church group down to the San Quintin valley in Baja California, Mexico. In the beginning, I expected this trip to be all about providing services and worship to a community, but it turned out to be so much more. When I arrived in Mexico, my eyes were peeled wide open. I had never seen anything like it which caused me to go into culture shock. I was not expecting their way of life to be so dramatically different from mine. I took one look around a local neighborhood, and the first thing I saw were children in filthy clothing and no shoes. These kids didn't have nearly the amount of resources I did as a child. For example, they kicked around a rock pretending it was a soccer ball. Another eye-opening moment for me was when I was thrown into a sink or swim situation. It was rare for the people there to speak English, and I did not speak nearly enough Spanish to fully communicate with them. In the beginning they would laugh at me when I tried to speak Spanish, and chances are I was probably butchering the language. By the end of the week, I gained more confidence in my Spanish and was able to make friends with some of the local kids in the community. Overall, I feel as if this experience shaped my cultural values and allowed me to develop a new perspective on

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