DIVERSITY MEMPHIS

I am the youngest of the three children. When I was born, my mother moved from the country to Memphis, Tennessee where she raised my two siblings and me. I never met my father. He died before I was born. My mother raised us on a very low income, but we never went without. My mother’s strong faith in the Lord was what carried her through many difficult times raising three children by herself.  I learned from my mother to put my trust in God.  

I am a proud product of Memphis City Schools. I had my oldest son my Senior year at Kingsbury High School. Though it was a difficult time, I persevered and worked hard. After graduating as Valedictorian I attended the University of Memphis on a full scholarship. By my second year of college, I was the mother of two and my mother left Memphis to return to Columbus, Ohio. This is the time of my life that I came into my own learning life as a young adult.  

Sunday, Wednesday, and Summers were spent in Mississippi. I grew up working in the ministry at Armstrong St. Church of God in Batesville, Mississippi. There, I learned how to be humble and how to serve others. We served the community as well as each other. The love of service was instilled in me through my mother as well as the church. I visited the sick in hospitals, served in nursing homes, cooked for those in need, sat with the elderly, did activities with the youth as a young adult. Through serving in the church ministries, I learned what to love as Christ meant. I was an unwed mother of three children by 21 years old and I was never thrown away, but instead loved in spite of my choices. They looked beyond my faults and saw my needs. So, as I graduated from college and married, I continued to live a life of love and service. The influence of love truly makes a difference. And I learned through the influences of the church how to love others.  

I love diversity. Diversity is everyone. Different. No one person, even twins are the same.  Diversity for me relates to beliefs, ideas, culture, and ethnicity. Each person varies based on genetics, environment, and experience. There is no cookie cutter for people that makes and bakes us the same. With this in mind, I treat each individual just as that, individual. I also accept people as they are, knowing that diversity is and will continue to be all around me. No matter where I am or who I am around, I choose to love the people I encounter and relate to. I live by the Golden Rule (Treat others as I want to be treated.) If I want to be respected, I should first respect others. I know I am different, so I respect other’s differences.  

If everyone lived by the golden rule discrimination would not exist. Unfortunately, that rule is not followed by all.  Discrimination has devastating effects within our society. It causes psychological trauma that is not easily erased.  I yet agonize about an experience I faced my senior year in high school. I faced many challenges, yet I worked extremely hard to excel academically in high school.  I earned the highest GPA in my class.  However, two of my peers who happened to be a different race assumed they would become Valedictorian and Salutatorian and though my GPA was higher, two staff members attempted not only to allow the other students to take 1st and 2nd in my class, but also to keep me from being inducted into the National Honor Society. Fortunately, there were administrators and teachers who fought for my standing and my induction. They believed in me though I was different and had a different set of circumstances. They accepted me for the person of character I was. 

I believe the way people respond to situations in society shows their character.  In our climate, people are groomed to react quickly but often without thought or care. But I believe being “swift to hear and slow to speak” goes a long way (James 1:19 KJV).How a person responds to people’s actions is critical.  A person who considers others chooses wisely how they treat people. Social justice is ideological and begins with respect for all. Our social climate is very unstable because of society’s perception of what is fair or just. Justice alone is not a strength in our society no matter what race, ethnicity, or background a person from. From the social media on our phones to our conversation in the workplace evidence of injustice alarms frequently. Changes begin with each individual, choosing to be just and fair. How feasible it that? 

I utilize my opportunities of engaging with others to promote diversity everywhere I go. Listening to young people is one of the best tools I use to encourage diversity. Young people often say or do things in ways I never thought about. Once I hear their ideas and see where they are coming from, I can better understand who they are and why they do what they do.  Asking questions is another way I learn about the differences around me.  How can you see things from other’s perspective if you don’t respectfully ask questions about their differences?  Take time to listen to people without judgement or being critical. You will often find you are not as different as you thought.