The wealth of diversity - in camping and elsewhere

As the title of this special issue implies, diversity brings with it a great wealth. By its very nature, diversity adds richness and dimensions to settings, situations or people that sameness cannot. As we know from the lessons taught t us by the environment, [bio]diversity maintains health, longevity, and a strong gene pool necessary for survival of all plant and animal species. As a member o the animal species, humanity too must recognize the strength, value and great benefits of differences -- differences in thought, behavior, traits and attitudes.

People are different from one another in many respects. In training groups abou issues of diversity I have found a conceptualization of diversity that is both easy to understand and easy to utilize in managing camp or conference center staff. Loden and Rosener (1991) presented the varying dimensions of diversity o a wheel. In the center of the wheel are primary dimensions of diversity -- thos that are difficult, if at all possible, to change about one's self. Primary dimensions are generally the more visible characteristics of an individual; the also tend to be the traits to which others respond most strongly. Primary dimensions of diversity include age, race, ethnicity, gender, physical abilities/qualities (includes physical attractiveness as well as elements of impairment), and sexual orientation.

On the outer rim of the wheel are secondary dimensions of diversity. These are characteristics that are generally chosen, learned, and relatively easy to change should one so choose. Upon meeting someone we might see several of the primary dimensions of diversity, yet we only learn about the secondary characteristics as we learn more about the person. Secondary dimensions of diversity include aspects of self such as religion, marital status, military experience, work background, education level, socio-economic status, and geographic location.

Each one of us is comprised of both primary and secondary characteristics. It i no secret that society tends to value certain traits over others. For instance, among the primary characteristics the more highly valued traits tend to be: the ages of 25-45, Caucasian race, Anglo-Saxon heritage, male sex, able bodied and attractive physique, tallness, physical fitness, and heterosexual orientation. Certainly this premise can be argued, yet within the larger society a person with these primary characteristics tends to receive better treatment in all areas of life (i.e. housing, job, salary, respect) than those who have differen traits.

It is apparent that in the field of camping we work with and provide programs for many, many people who do not match all of the "most valued" traits. In our work with people of all walks of life, most of us strive to value each person the same as any other person -- we attempt to respect each person for all of hi or her differences. This has not always been the case, and in some respects, is still a struggle.

I had the opportunity recently to peruse issues of Camping Magazine from the 1950s and 1960s. In addition to being quite amused by the advertisements and amazed at how far ACA has come in relation to safety and standards issues, I wa struck by the struggles of those earlier years. Articles about reducing racial tensions, our democratic heritage, inter-cultural camping, and communists in camp were frequent, as were letters from readers voicing their own opinions about those elements of diversity.

In the April 1954 issue of Camping Magazine there is a short article entitled, "Religious Programming In the Intercultural Camp" that states: "The responsibility of the intercultural camp is to help people to live more in harmony without compelling uniformity...." This could not be better stated were this a quote from an article published today. Differences make us strong as a people, as a camp, and as an association.

Differences are also often the root of difficulties faced by many even today. Forty years ago Camping Magazine was publishing articles about racial tension and intercultural issues. Today, readers will find articles reflecting the same struggles. Perhaps those struggles are more obvious today and tend to result in greater social outrage, but they are the same struggles. Fortunately, more and more people are seeing the moral and human rights concerns embedded in issues o diversity.

People react differently to noted differences between themselves and others. Some welcome the differences as exciting and as opportunities to learn, others see differences as points of contention and as barriers to reaching common goals. This negative viewpoint is often described as prejudice. Prejudice occur any time one has preconceived notions about something -- and we are all prejudiced. Those preconceived notions usually are used in a negative fashion; we decide we don't like something although we've not had any experience with it In this way prejudice tends to limit our behaviors.

Unfortunately, when we limit our behaviors, we also limit the choices of others and deny them opportunities. Before ever tasting it, we often decide we don't like the food placed before us; without ever speaking to an individual, we decide he is a bad person based on the way he wears a baseball cap; before getting to know someone else, we judge she has nothing important to say because she is old and "out of touch."

Camping makes a tremendous difference in the lives of those it touches: staff, campers, parents. Camp can make a difference in addressing and helping to comba prejudice of all types. As Camping Magazine pointed out back in 1954, "If we look at where we get our prejudice, we get a cue as to the role of camp. We acquired our attitudes not from books, not from associating within a group. We got them fundamentally from the basic groups with (sic) which we were a part -- the family group, the play group, the basic community groups. It's the group experience that makes us what we are as far as attitudes are concerned" ("Religious Programming," 1954). Likewise, in the January 1958 issue of Camping Magazine, Dorothy MacMillan reminded us that, "Children are not born with prejudices.... The open mindedness of most children gives camping a unique opportunity to help raise a generation less fettered by bigotry and consequentl more able to resolve the world's conflicts in an atmosphere of understanding." Camp is a place to foster this open-mindedness.

It is in this search for the ability "to resolve the world's conflicts in an atmosphere of understanding" that camping strives to welcome people with all dimensions of diversity. At times it may appear as though some elements of diversity go against our belief systems. For example, many who believe in a fundamentalist type of religion have great difficulty in accepting people who are gay or lesbian; this difficulty can be likened to the difficulty most peopl had a short 30 years ago accepting blacks and whites using the same drinking fountains. It is important to recognize that differences are differences and that is all they are. They are neither good nor bad in and of themselves. Differences gain value attributions only when people label them as such; inherently they have no value.

Rather than focus on one dimension of diversity and label it bad or of little worth, we should focus on the value of the person. Every person brings with him or her both a sense of beauty and tribulations. We work with one another's abilities and limitations every time we interact with others. By focusing on th strengths, abilities, and essence of a person, we can minimize the tendency to pick apart each person into a pile of characteristics that we then label as good, bad or indifferent.

There is great wisdom in things of the past. As you read the articles related t diversity in this issue, I encourage you to remember that, "We should not impos anything, but impose anything, but should try to should try to find the needs o young people and find what we can do that will best help them grow in their rights as democratic citizens" ("Religious programming," 1954). Let us strive t reach this goal in all of our dealings with our own camps and with ACA as an association.

References

Loden, M. & Rosener, J. (1991). Workforce America! Managing Employee Diversity as a Vital Resource. Homewood, Illinois: Business One Irwin.

MacMillan, D. (1958, January). Our democratic heritage. Camping Magazine, p. 42

Religious programming in the inter-cultural camp. (1954, April). Camping Magazine, p. 17.

Debra J. Jordan, Re.D., is guest editor of this issue of Camping Magazine. She is an associate professor in the Leisure Services Division at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

COPYRIGHT 1994 American Camping Association
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