Reply to Diversity of schools - can this work both ways? Am I being unreasonable?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I truly value a diverse environment for my children. I want them to interact with and befriend people from all walks of life - economically, perspective, experience, racially and ethnically. Diversity isn't a buzzword for me - I truly see the value in it, across a variety of contexts. 
 [/quote]

Is diversity really a value to you or do your just want a pat on the back from black, brown, queer, disabled and poor folks? Upper/middle class white people are always worried about their kids being “the only one” or “uncomfortable.” If you care about diversity, then let your kid experience what it has been like to be a Black or Brown or queer, disabled, fat or low income person in North American culture since it values whiteness, thinness, heterosexuality, physical dominance and wealth. Have them take the bus to school from 30 blocks away, try to be on time  and not have anything for dinner for 3 days in a row, have them spend a week navigating the world in a wheel chair, fast for Eid, have them wait tables in an IHOP during the night shift in a working class neighborhood,  let them hold hands with their same sex friend while in a Dairy Queen in a small, rural Southern town.

It takes innate courage, grit and joy to thrive and shine in a country when you are not be born part of the dominant white, straight, Judeo-Christian,  able-bodied, middle class culture. It doesn’t matter what type of school your kid goes to- what matters is the kaleidoscope of experiences that form the fabric of their life. If their life is the MC/UMC path of school (even in a “diverse” school), pressure cooker academics, tutors, soccer/basketball/football or ballet/lacrosse/softball and college study abroad, then your kid’s worldview will be very small indeed. Good luck to your child on the journey-[/quote]

I've done like literally everything you've listed other than a wheelchair.  Not out of choice.  Out of necessity.  The dominant result of these experiences was a burning desire to shield myself and my children from anything like this ever happening to them, and insulate from hardships in a blanket of money.  Don't romanticize poverty or hardship.  Most people who are in the middle of it dream of nothing but ending it.[/quote]
Yeah, the idea that I'm going to let my child suffer because other people in the world have it tough is asinine.

I mean, if my kid's school has a bunch of non-white kids whose parents are doctors, diplomats, college professors etc., that's cool. But if it was 95%+ white, I'd be fine, too. I'm not interested in having my kids be part of some social experiment at the cost of their education. [/quote]

Wow. I can’t believe someone is still using the phrase “social experiment” in this context. It’s both ridiculously cliche and rather offensive.

Do you honestly believe that your kid will not thrive — but will instead “suffer” — unless surrounded by children of the upper echelons of society?

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