There are many social practices that have been shaped by problems of diversity. These changes can be seen in schools, workplace, and communities. Social practices such as in education have provided all materials and learning format that accommodate everyone without any limit. Individuals can learn and explore as much as everyone. The availability of literature in different languages and interpreters in most places help provides the ability for everyone to gain information through their own way of reading and understanding.
Religious practices of all types have been allowed for people to worship in their way giving opportunities for groups to build their own house of worship. For example, Muslim mosques are now allowed to operate for prayers and their style of dressing accepted as compared to the past. Muslim Americans were not left out from these minority groups especially with the way the women dress up in public.
A topic such as cultural identity has influenced a lot in modern society. The society is being pushed to accept equality in diversity regarding social, political and civil rights for everyone. It does not matter who an individual is, they have the same rights as human once assimilated. These topics have forced acceptance and integration of individuals from various origin as compared. There was always limit for what foreigners such as the Muslim could do but due to policies and acceptance, everything is changing. A Muslim could not freely worship in a mosque because they were not accepted. Cultural identity has a huge impact on politics nowadays as some politicians’ appeal to them to gain their vote. Others are noted to be against immigrants who account to diversity in this country. Comments made by anyone can be used for or against in politics.
As society continues to be more diverse, the lifestyle and value system has a great influence on how individuals socially integrate and interact. There are some problems which are connected to diversity that has prompted change such as bias, stereotype, prejudice and racial discrimination. Foreigners are noted to be individuals who causes problems, live under the poverty level and use tax payer’s money. On the contrary, most of them are hardworking people who do well to contribute to the economy.
Some people select friends or under look others because they do not look like them, belong to their class or act like them. To under look others in the society is not encouraging and need adjustment. Muslims have a stigma because they are known to be a race that kills or uses religion to commit atrocities. Meanwhile not every Muslim does that, other races commit similar crimes like that. Due to the attitudes of some of them, they are being labelled.
In the healthcare industry, the goal is to provide patient care with no discrimination. There are also instances where some patients who are from diverse populations seem to think that there is discrimination. For example, not everyone is good at understanding others who speak with an accent or who cannot speak. Some patients get frustrated if not understood. Not understanding a patient can impair the nurse-patient relationship and can hinder care. Diversity is an important consideration for nurses when providing care. Individuals need to be assessed and understood properly to identify their problems and needs accurately.
For example, an approach to a Muslim may be different from others and requires a specific way. This alone shapes each nurse on how to communicate with patients from different diversity. Some patients are a handicap, cannot talk, cannot hear or see normally thereby influencing behavior change in the way of providing services. Impaired communication is a major issue in healthcare and is addressed as quickly as possible. Regardless of the various industries or places, being aware of the environment, acknowledging others and accepting their beliefs could make the society better.
Muslims in America falls under the minority group that comes from different countries of the world. One of the biggest struggles of being a Muslim in America is how the majority groups perceive them. The root of the problem came from the terrorist attacks such as 9/11 and the Islamic terrorist groups who encourage Muslim family or brothers, at home and overseas, to kill the westerners. The issue is about anti-Muslim discrimination. This group has racially been stereotyped amongst others and some people do not like to see Muslims or sit near them. Others will run away especially if they see anyone passing that is dressed like a Muslim.
To some, this group are people who throw bombs with the intention to kill others. The data collected from casualties that have taken place around the world is often linked to the Islam. For example, the terrorist attacks led by Islamic militants State of Iraq and Syria(ISIS) in Paris and San Bernardino, California have since signaled an upward trend since 2014 (Council on American Islamic Relations, 2015).
There is an estimate of about 3.45 million Muslims living in the United States according to the Pew Center. This group came from different countries and are sparsely distributed throughout the nation. The Muslim children born here are equally impacted by these issues and can easily be identified due to their unique style of dressing. It is imperative to know that not every Muslim is a radical just because others commit atrocities. The group works to earn a living and pay taxes just like everyone else. Still, they feel threatened by any crime committed by either one of them because of the fear and hostility in the society. Their faith has been tarnished by radical Muslims who kill in honor of Mohamed. The violence seen in the media and society has also led to the burning of the mosques and creation of anti-Muslim movements. According to Richardson (2004), anti-Muslim hostility includes verbal and physical attacks on Muslims, mosques, widespread and routine stereotypes in mass media, and discrimination in employment practices.
Being a Muslim in America is an issue within the topic of Cultural Identity. Culture is made up of characters, beliefs, and a dress style that is normal within certain groups like Muslims. Examples of cultural identity vary from race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, socioeconomic class, status, and nationality. Muslims in America relate to the topic of cultural identity because they are a diverse group. The culture is recognized by the unique way of dressing and prayers which typically identifies them in the society. Children are born and raised within cultural practices. It is difficult to misidentify a Muslim in the public especially women who wear hijabs which is a symbol of one of their cultural practices. Muslims do not change their way of dressing or their way of worship anyway they are. Many of them are married to only other Muslims or to someone willing to covert.
Some Muslims go to the extreme of fulfilling a belief to maintain cultural identity for example, some parents insist on children marrying other Muslims or arranging marriage. Maintaining cultural identity is clearly important for Muslims customs and traditions. The understanding of this topic is that one can be identified through cultural practices. The unique identification of an individual through cultural characteristics can subject to someone being a target in the society. Just as a Muslim can easily be identified by way of dressing in the society, any anti-Muslim activist who wants to get away from a Muslim or insult them can easily do it.
The Muslim community faces marginalization, fear, stress, isolation, discrimination, desensitization and insecurity and have also been discriminated within the government. A lot of them feel that they are not welcome evident by the anti-Muslim groups. These issues increased after the 9/11 incident. In 2017, seven predominately Muslims countries were banned from traveling into the United States by President Trump (Thrush, 2017). This has led to negative stereotypes, labeling them as terrorist and anti-American (Gallup, 2009). Approximately seven out of ten Muslim-Americans experience discrimination, with 61 percent daily experience. This group is being treated with less respect and receive poorer service as compare to others, and are being threatened or harassed (Anderson, 2013).
Some of the goals expected are; there will be more awareness of who Muslims are and the knowledge that attitudes differ amongst them. There could be bad Muslims amongst them just as to other community. The fear that grows in other Americans regarding the Muslims will be overcome. People will be able to see them as normal people and stop running away from them. A Muslim will not be labeled as a terrorist when no crime has been committed. Health providers will be knowledgeable and avoid discrimination, bias, stereotype and know how to care for their mental needs. Muslim women will be able to walk around wearing hijab without fear of being harassed. Communities will be able to live peacefully with one another. Hate crimes will be reduced or eliminated.
Encouraging the government to make policies addressing racial discrimination among the Muslim community. This will give them a sense of acknowledgment to the various problems encountered. Groups will be encouraging to work closely together to serve this population with their challenges such as racial equality and prejudice. The public entities should be encouraged to collect more information on Muslims and the faith to serve them better with no inequalities. Muslims should be referred to appropriate resources which can help combat the fear and hate crimes and other mental issues.
Community meetings should be held inviting everyone including the Muslims. This will give a chance for them to express their feelings and for non-Muslims to hear them. More forums around the nation should be created to increase how Islamophobia and all forms of racism can affect people’s lives. Data should be collected on the radical Muslims and the faith to differentiate the characteristics from the good Muslims. Some Muslims uses their faith to commit crimes which are not what the faith is all about. Accepting Muslims practices of faith, culture and women wear hijah could also be helpful. There are many other cultural practices that have traditional wear so theirs should not be different.
Resistance could be encountered during implementation because not everyone may be able to listen or ready to believe in them. Another challenge during this process could be the threat from those who are rejecting the idea of accepting the Muslims or refusing them as part of the community. According to Talat Ahmed, the state has a role in promoting Islamophobia and at the potential for resistance. The critics on social medial can also hinder change if the media continue to promote hatred. Anti-Muslims comments have become a subject on TV and social media (Talat, 2013). With this, some people will push away any efforts of change or understanding.
To overcome any challenge, information should be sort out to differentiate the real from wrong which may resonate with some people. More information may be gathered on those activities that differentiate what a radical Muslims does from the regular in the community. A list of crimes could also be arranged to identify atrocities committed by the non-Muslims and those committed by the radical Islamic. These might ease the tension in anyone rejecting these proposals. There are some people who need a simple explanation with clarifying evidence to get them going. People could be convinced not belief the social media language.
Given the layout of the plan, there is a possibility of it working especially with the plan of bringing everyone into one gathering. That may increase trust and understanding of each other’s culture. The idea of looking at how the radical Muslims are different from the good Muslim may better educate and increase awareness of who this group is.
I come from Cameroon located in West/Central Africa and had started my nursing career back there. It is a country with more than fifty tribal languages and different cultures and beliefs. I came across different groups such as the Muslims, the Bororos, Graffis, handicap, and a community where almost everyone has epilepsy. Some could not speak English or French which are the national languages but only spoke their native language. Being a nurse and working with a different set of the population was challenging. I encounter problems such as people complaining of not being treated fairly because of discrimination.
In the neighborhood where I lived, they will always call me a stranger because I was not a native of that land. Regardless, I treated everyone with dignity and respect without discrimination. Even though it was challenging, it was also rewarding in my field. It gave me a strong foundation to care for people in a diverse environment. It made me think about my own values and perspectives before interacting with others. I have a very strong skill working in a diverse environment especially racially and ethnically due to my background. It has enhanced my ability to care as a nurse in a diverse environment.
Critically analyzing diversity is an added value to how I interact with people because knowing deeper who an individual is, where he/she is coming from, their values and beliefs give a better picture of that person and how to deal with them. People are not the same, cultures and beliefs are not the same, preference or feelings are not the same. For example, some men do not like to be touched by a female caregiver and vice versa, Muslims do not eat pork meat, some people tolerate pain more than others. Knowing about other people’s values and beliefs is imperative to avoid conflicts or anything which makes an individual uncomfortable. Knowing that Muslims do not eat pork will help the dietary department not to put it on the meal tray and providing same-sex caregiver to anyone who does not want the opposite is respecting ones right.
The benefits of overcoming issues in diversity are that it brings effective communication amongst individuals or between co-workers and patients. Communication will promote understanding and workforce between workers. It will improve the patient-caregiver relationship in my field of practice. The caregiver will know how to effectively communicate with the patient. Problems will easily be solved. The relationship between individuals will be improved. There will be personal professional growth and a better job performance. The diverse skills will attract clients leading to better business for the company (Reynolds, 2016).
Challenges such as trust in the relationship may arise. It may be difficult to trust someone from a different background as no one can tell. Another challenge is that some people from different cultural background may be unable to voice their concern. Communication could also be a challenge in that, it could be misinterpreted or difficulties to comprehend a conversation. (Reynolds, 2016).
