In one of our weekly meetings a few weeks ago, we were talking about equity, diversity and inclusion. Some of the youth artists asked, what is “critical diversity?”
Imagine you have a big box of colorful crayons. Some of the crayons are red, some are blue, some are green, and so on. Each crayon is like a person with their own unique color, background, and experiences.
Now, critical diversity is like saying, “Hey, it’s not just enough to have all these different colors of crayons in the box. We need to make sure we’re using all these colors to create beautiful and meaningful pictures.”
So, when we talk about “critical diversity,” we’re not just talking about having people from different backgrounds or with different qualities in a group. We’re saying it’s important to really value and include all those different people and their perspectives.
It’s especially important to include those who might have been left out in the past because of unfair or exclusionary practices. Imagine if some of your crayons were always pushed to the bottom of the box and never got a chance to be used. Critical diversity is about making sure every crayon gets its time to shine!
In simple terms, critical diversity is like using all the crayons in the box to create beautiful and colorful pictures, and making sure that everyone, even those who were left out before, gets a fair chance to be a part of the artwork. It’s about celebrating our differences and making sure they all count.
