By George Kastanis
“It takes all sorts to make a world“ or else “κόσμος και κοσμάκης“.Two proverbs, one in English and one in Greek, both of them expressing the same idea i.e.that the world consists of many different people-and this is something that should be celebrated not feared. Diversity is something we all see everywhere in our lives. At the age of globalisation, communities include members of different national backgrounds, religions and races. Along with these, we should also take into account the established differences based on sex (men-women), physical disability, social class, income and education.
Although people are aware of these differences that exist among them, there is still a long way to go until our global community understands that diversity doesn’t have to result in inequality and injustice. It is true that some societies have done more than others to overcome social barriers and prejudice against various groups. Countries like Canada and Australia, for example, have been passing laws to support and protect equal rights among their citizens. These are ‘new’ countries that have built their national identity on immigrants from many different places ,people who in the recent past decided to flee war, percecution or poverty and start a new life in a new place.
2015 is the year when the Council of Europe, WWF and Action Aid invited the world’s citizens to become involved, responsible and informed in the fight against inequality of every kind among people. It is time to make equality and mutual respect the realities of our lives!
Sources:
1. http://globaledugr.blogspot.gr/
2. http://plancanada.ca/downloads/planyouth/gender-equality-toolkit.pdf
