colkdavis
Nov 11, 2013
Undergraduate / I should diversify my friends; Common app essay [2]
A few weeks ago, my father told me that I should diversify my friends. As an African-American living in the diverse city of Berkeley I was slightly offended and told him that it wasn't a problem. I live in an area known for it's diversity, I go to the first school in our nation to desegregate without court order. How could I not be diverse. Then I thought about it; all of my good friends are white.
If I am truly not diverse than I lack the perspective that comes with culture. Each culture has something to offer me and I have ignored the opportunity to learn from them. The dynamic for neighboring households in Berkeley could be worlds away from one another and I have only experienced a small percentage of them.
Leading a Spoken word club I have been able to experiences snippets of people culture through their poetry. Understanding that there is an abundance of rich culture in my school it is disturbing, considering that I have not deepened my friendships with each of those different cultures. Seeing the presence of culture in others lives makes me wonder what aspects of my culture I have to pass on more importantly what I have to discover.
By making myself a minority and not exploring my own culture I lack essential factors in my identity. I have a very narrow view on the world because I have not bonded with my race the way I should have. In order to find out who I am I need to understand where I came from. A lot of my identity is based off of assumptions. In order to take pride in myself I have to take pride in my ancestry.
In my city I see restaurants from every walk of life. Shades from corners of each country. Everyone takes an immense pride in their origin. In Berkeley foreign culture has the opportunity to not only live, but thrive. I've learned to learn more about my culture and not let it be diluted. Through my city I see the pride in each form of history and I am learning how to show pride in my own.
A few weeks ago, my father told me that I should diversify my friends. As an African-American living in the diverse city of Berkeley I was slightly offended and told him that it wasn't a problem. I live in an area known for it's diversity, I go to the first school in our nation to desegregate without court order. How could I not be diverse. Then I thought about it; all of my good friends are white.
If I am truly not diverse than I lack the perspective that comes with culture. Each culture has something to offer me and I have ignored the opportunity to learn from them. The dynamic for neighboring households in Berkeley could be worlds away from one another and I have only experienced a small percentage of them.
Leading a Spoken word club I have been able to experiences snippets of people culture through their poetry. Understanding that there is an abundance of rich culture in my school it is disturbing, considering that I have not deepened my friendships with each of those different cultures. Seeing the presence of culture in others lives makes me wonder what aspects of my culture I have to pass on more importantly what I have to discover.
By making myself a minority and not exploring my own culture I lack essential factors in my identity. I have a very narrow view on the world because I have not bonded with my race the way I should have. In order to find out who I am I need to understand where I came from. A lot of my identity is based off of assumptions. In order to take pride in myself I have to take pride in my ancestry.
In my city I see restaurants from every walk of life. Shades from corners of each country. Everyone takes an immense pride in their origin. In Berkeley foreign culture has the opportunity to not only live, but thrive. I've learned to learn more about my culture and not let it be diluted. Through my city I see the pride in each form of history and I am learning how to show pride in my own.