Remember that we are more alike than not ...

All great artists draw from the same resource: 

the human heart, which tells us that 

we are all more alike than we are unalike.

Maya Angelou

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Embrace DIVERSITY!!

we are all more alike than unalike ....  

All great artists draw 

from the same resource: 

the human heart, 

which tells us that 

we are all more alike 

than we are unalike.

Maya Angelou

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day73: stand up for diversity

It is time for parents to teach 

young people early on 

that in diversity there is beauty and 

there is strength. 

Maya Angelou

In case I have not made myself clear as a parent ...

'there is beauty and there is strength' in DIVERSITY!!

I have said this before and I am going to say it again, 

embrace diversity.

This message is even more critical with the new 

political landscape of our country and the world, 

diversity is under attack.  

Now more than ever before parents, teachers, mentors, peers, need to stand up and protect diversity. This means being extra aware of language and actions that might belittle or threaten others.

In the days since the election I have been reading the wise words of Martin Luther King, Jr.  So many of his quotes apply to our current state of affairs, yet this quote now breaks my heart.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

This is my dream too, that no child will be judged by gender, skin color, religious beliefs and/or sexual preference. On election day we took a major step backwards from this goal, the election results have validated some seriously bad behavior and rhetoric which MUST be stopped.

We need to be vigilant that all people are treated with dignity and respect.

love, mom

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day68: embrace and celebrate diversity!!!

'spark of the divine' (mini dress made from the program from the UUAC Sherborn)

We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, 

and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry 

are equal in value no matter what their color.

Maya Angelou

Today I have struggled with all that I want to say on the subject of diversity.  With certain candidates spewing hateful words and inciting fear, I see our country falling backwards to ways and beliefs that do not embrace diversity.

In grade school I learned that America was a melting pot, a refuge for anyone, rich with diversity,   and that is what made America great!! I just loved that idea of everyone 'melting' together, holding each other up.  However as I got older I saw that idea was more a work in progress, that the melting pot was more an ideal than a reality. There is a long history in our country of hatred, racism, discrimination and fear, and we had made some progress.  There is/was so much more work to be done, however right now I feel as we are sliding back on all fronts.  

I was at a celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr and one of the speakers spoke of how much we as a country, as a culture, as a society have lost because of discrimination, and his point went straight into my soul.  He spoke of what was lost because an entire race of people were not taken into account, were not given opportunities to speak, to learn, to contribute.  

When you were young girls and you asked me about the atrocities of the world I explain that they stemmed from fear!! fear of something, someone that is different.  

Prejudice and discrimination comes from fear, and fear can come from ignorance.  

It is SO important for everyone to stand up against discrimination.

Speak up against fear of the different, embrace diversity, welcome all the colors of thread, 

because the more colors, the more rich the tapestry.

peace

love, mom

(more tomorrow)

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may this dress remind us to embrace and celebrate diversity!!

It is time for parents to teach young people early on 

that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. 

Maya Angelou

link to video and text via Harvard Graduate School of Education

Also to read some of my thoughts about this inspiring speech and diversity, 

please check out my art blog: 

VirginiaCreates

http://virginiafitzgerald.blogspot.com/2016/05/this-is-my-religion-thank-you-donovan.html

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