Diversity (politics)

Diversity as seen in sociology and political studies is the degree of differences in identifying features among the members of a purposefully defined group, such as any group differences in racial or ethnic classifications, age, gender, religion, philosophy, physical abilities, socioeconomic background, sexual orientation, gender identity, intelligence, mental health, physical health, genetic attributes, personality, behavior or attractiveness.

When measuring human diversity, a diversity index exemplifies the likelihood that two randomly selected residents have different ethnicities. If all residents are of the same ethnic group it is zero by definition. If half are from one group and half from another, it is 50. The diversity index does not take into account the willingness of individuals to cooperate with those of other ethnicities.

International human rights

Further information: Inclusion (disability rights)

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities affirms to "respect difference and acceptance of persons with disabilities as human diversity and humanity" for protection of human rights of persons with disabilities.

Ideology

Main articles: Diversity ideologies, New Left, and Multiculturalism

Political creeds which support the idea that diversity is valuable and desirable hold that recognizing and promoting these diverse cultures may aid communication between people of different backgrounds and lifestyles, leading to greater knowledge, understanding, and peaceful coexistence. For example, "Respect for Diversity" is one of the six principles of the Global Greens Charter, a manifesto subscribed to by Green parties from all over the world. In contrast to diversity, some political creeds promote cultural assimilation as the process to lead to these ends.

Use in American academy

This use of diversity in this sense also extends to American academy, where in an attempt to create a "diverse student body" typically supports the recruitment of students from historically excluded populations, such as students of African-American or Latino background as well as women in such historically underrepresented fields as the sciences.

Business and workplace

Corporations make commitments to diversity in their personnel both for reasons of brand halo and competitive advantage, but progress is slow.

Gender in Politics

Historically, women have been underrepresented in politics compared to men. Women's rights movements, such as feminism, have addressed the marginalization of women in politics.

Race in Politics

United States

In American politics, white men have often been represented more compared to people of color. There has only been one black president, Barack Obama. All U.S. presidents, except Obama, have been white men. In other sections of U.S. politics, the amount of people of color represented has gradually increased each year since the 20th Century.

See also

• Acceptance
• Affirmative action
• Cultural diversity
• Discrimination
• Diversity training
• Gender diversity
• Heterodox Academy (viewpoint diversity in academy)
• Identity politics
• Individual and group rights
• Motto of the European Union
• Multiculturalism
• Neurodiversity
• Racial diversity
• Racial segregation
• Rainbow flag
• Sexual diversity
• Workplace diversity

External links

• Quotations related to Diversity (politics) at Wikiquote