I encountered the real diversity for the first time in 1996, when I moved from Ukraine to the United States. My family settled in Newark, New Jersey, a place populated by individuals from numerous racial, ethnic, religious, cultural, and social backgrounds. While most of my Ukrainian friends went to private schools and associated almost exclusively with each other, I went to a public high school and got to know many interesting, different, and unique people.
In high school, I became best friends with an African American girl, who turned out to be not as different from me as I thought she would be. She took me to her Baptist church, which made a huge impression on me. Being used to a stern, proper, and traditional, or perhaps even old-fashioned Catholic masses, I was amazed to see the freedom of Baptist masses, full of joy and emotion.
My first visit to New York City was another one of the cultural shocks. Harlem, Upper East Side, Greenwich Village, Chinatown, Little Italy, Midtown – it is amazing how different cultural, racial, and ethnic groups coexist on a relatively small piece of land. I enjoyed the unique atmosphere of Little Italy, where restaurants look and feel more like big family kitchens and dining rooms, than like stern banquet halls I used to associate all the restaurants with. It was also quite amusing to turn the corner of Mulberry Street, and find myself in the middle of the entirely different culture, where the majority of people did not even speak English. Chinatown is an indescribable phenomenon, which cannot be easily explained, but is definitely worth seeing.
Having an African American friend, a Chinese boyfriend, and numerous Muslim, Arab, and American acquaintances taught me important and valuable lessons. Interacting with people from backgrounds different from one’s own teaches one to appreciate one’s own culture more, and respect the cultures of others. Interacting with different people made me understand, respect, and value the beliefs, traditions, and cultures of others. Whenever I meet someone from a different background now, I try to learn a little bit about that person, about the way they live, about the things they believe and treasure. The more people I meet and the more I learn, the more convinced I become that we are not all that different after all. We might call things differently, we might speak different languages, eat different foods, celebrate different holidays, but our basic values, beliefs, and dreams are the same. Traditions, languages, and cultures separate people, but there are certain universal beliefs and values that we all understand and treasure.
Traveling is another way I have learned to appreciate other cultures. Traveling throughout Eastern Europe made me realize that even seemingly similar cultures, such as various Slavic ethnicities, have their own distinct differences and nuances. Russia, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Germany, Luxembourg, France, Belgium… All close in proximity, yet each distinctly unique and different.
I came to the realization that only through education, openness, communication, and dialogue can one learn to understand, respect, and accept others. I, therefore, encourage and anticipate others to come to the same conclusion. Yet the acts, such as the World Trade Center attack remind me that not everyone is as open-minded and willing to communicate as I am.
I have lost several friends and acquaintances in the World Trade Center attack, and seeing the pictures of the missing in the subway stations, in magazines, and on television makes me feel like I have lost many more. In times like these it is the hardest to remain open-minded, non-judgmental, and understanding. It is very difficult to not give in and vent out the anger, hurt, disappointment, and frustration. Aggression, revenge, or retaliation seems to be very tempting, and the hardest challenge is to not act on impulse. But no matter how appealing it seems to retaliate aggressively, now is the time when peaceful dialogue is the most essential.
Dialogue Among Civilizations is an important United Nations undertaking as it promotes communication, education, tolerance, and understanding. In the light of the September 11th tragedy, the project takes on a special importance. It is crucial to realize that the attack was a result of miscommunication or perhaps the lack of adequate information. Osama bin Ladin twists the underlying principles of Islam and uses them to preach hate and intolerance towards America to people who perhaps have no access to any other information about the life in the United States. He and his followers stereotype all Americans as power and control driven nation who seeks to dominate and impose its values upon the world. Bin Ladin chooses not consider the fact that the United States is a melting pot of numerous ethnic, religious, cultural, and social entities, and peaceful coexistence is our main goal.
If Americans today give in to the temptation of aggressive retaliation, then we will be proving bin Ladin’s claim that we are the domineering, power hungry nation. Instead, the process of peaceful dialogue and education should resume. Our mission and duty as a developed, civilized country is to educate people both in the United States and overseas about acceptance and understanding. It is important to educate foreign people about the American ways of life in order to prevent or minimize the possibility of the similar attacks in the future. It is also equally important to educate Americans about Arab and Middle Eastern countries and cultures and the principles of Islam to prevent prejudice, and consequently violence against all Arab and Muslim people both overseas and in the United States.
Ignorance breeds prejudice and violence, so education, communication, and any other exchange of information are the only ways to ensure that the devastation of the New York and Washington attacks does not repeat. The tragic events of September 11th were not only crimes against America and American people, but they were also crimes against humanity. Bin Ladin’s goal was to create devastation and chaos and cause panic and fear not only in the United States, but also across the world. We should seek catharsis not in violence, destruction, and revenge, but in peaceful dialogue. Instead of drawing the dividing lines and grouping people into “us” and “them”, we all must work towards global unity.
Nowadays, so many Americans show off their support for our county and the unity of our nation by having “United We Stand” bumper stickers and signs on their cars, in their windows, on their computer screens, etc. Ultimately, we should strive towards the similar global unity. Despite our cultural, religious, racial, political, social, and ethnic differences, we are all HUMAN! And that should be our uniting factor!
We should forgive, but never forget! And we must do everything you can to prevent it from happening again…
