Both Mehta and Elick address the diversity and melting pots in Queens. However, Mehta takes a more general approach by first describing the diversity in Queens, while overviewing the different people who lived there throughout the ages. Whereas, Ellick takes a more personal approach by simply sharing his experience with the diversity in Queens.
Amongst the three articles, Ellick’s article stood out to me the most. Unfortunately, I can relate to Ellick’s feeling of being closed out. Growing up, I attended a Jewish Orthodox high school, Yeshivah of Flatbush. This school emphasizes the Jewish law and certain values pertaining to the Jewish law such as modesty, prayer, observing the Sabbath, and portraying proper midot, the Hebrew for good characteristics. All the students who attended this school were mainly from the Syrian community, where they were raised the same way. The fact that I come from an extremely tight knit, exclusive community, where everyone knows everyone, played a major role in my identity. Unfortunately, everyone and anyone I knew was merely a replication of one another, including myself. The teachers at this school, many of which were Syrians, ultimately cultivated an environment of students who not only lacked a sense of identity but lacked a sense of diversity and exploration. Therefore, I never really had the window of opportunity to learn about a group of people different from myself. Which is why my experience here at Hunter college has been eye opening and exciting.
However, part of me feels as it is too late, as Ellick would say. However, Diversity is really all around us and it’s as simple as seeing someone of different culture or ethnicity and striking up a conversation with them. Although Brooklyn ( where I’m from) isn’t as diverse as I would want it to be (especially my neighborhood) it forces me to go out and find the diversity on my own. This, in turn, allows me to develop a great appreciation for diversity. I now view the world around me as a window into the everyday life of groups of people different than myself.
