Diversity makes us strong. Diversity teaches us acceptance.
Diversity is what makes up Canada.
We have so much room for cultural appreciation, tolerance and love. What we don’t have room for is bigotry, racism, hatred, or anything else that pits us against each other. These negative emotions and ideals take up too much room.
RELATED:Diversity a Canadian strength, Trudeau says of Trump tweets at congresswomen
We’re seeing an example of what this kind of negativity can lead to, as U.S. President Donald Trump does his best to divide his country along racial lines, using racist attacks on four democratic congresswomen a stepping stone to his 2020 re-election.
There is no room in Trump’s world for anyone that disagrees with him. In his world, disagreeing with the way he wants to run the country means you “hate America.”
Rather than calling out Trump, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a statement that echoes the highest ideals of being Canadian: “The diversity of our country is actually one of our greatest strengths and a source of tremendous resilience and pride for Canadians and we will to continue to defend that.”
Identity is something everyone can be proud of. Whatever your background is, it has helped shape you to who you are today. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to share our beliefs and differences.
It would be a very boring Canada if we all lived the same, thought the same, and did the same things. Our Canada is colourful. It’s skin colours, clothing colours, cars, churches, mosques, and landscapes. We have lush rain forests, prairies, endless skies, mountains, and oceans. And, just like our landscape, we have blue jeans, beautiful robes, gold in our scarves, bright beads in our footwear.
It’s what makes us unique, together.
There are some people out there who don’t cherish our uniqueness, and that makes me sad. They are scared their own identity is being threatened, and are blaming the wrong causes.
Their identity is only threatened by negativity that they bring on themselves. With these strong ideals that only their identity matters, they are met with negativity that fuels their disdain.
RELATED: Senators push for stronger legislation for boosting diversity on boards
We can’t stand by and let their negativity into my life, our community, and our cultures. The only way to silence them is to continue enjoying each other’s company and differences, and ignoring their negativity.
Stand up when you see injustice. Stand up for your fellow human. We are all in this together, and can promote peace and prosperity through positivity.