Awestruck by the Diversity!

–Yasmin Akther, student, Asian University for Women; intern, IWB

“Strength lies in differences, not in similarities.” I never realized how powerful this quote by Stephen Richards Covey is until I joined the Institute of Wellbeing (IWB) for my summer internship. I have learned many new things during the 18 days of my internship, and my perspective about “equality” has definitely changed.

I always had an obsession with working in an NGO. I liked how NGOs work to help people. But I never thought that deeply about the “criteria” of people. I knew in Bangladesh discrimination is very common especially in workplaces. But by discrimination, most people only think about discrimination based on sex. Discrimination occurs when we judge people by sex, age, religion, caste, color, or even physical abilities.

During the internship we all were assigned to mentors. I got the chance to work with with Mr. Talukder Rifat Pasha who is a blind person. As we were in a virtual meeting, I did not even realize his disability until he himself uttered the word. There was no way for me to even imagine that the confident and enthusiastic person who was giving a presentation is actually blind! His mentoring was marvelous. Being disabled himself, he guided us on the way to accept the diverse world. He graduated from a renowned public university in Bangladesh, which is remarkable. Maybe people like him need an extra hand to perform some tasks. But they have their own talents. That day I realized we also judge people by their disabilities, even when they can overcome them, which is also discrimination.

Well, this was not the end. The last assignment was the main reason why I have changed my thoughts on diversity. I got a chance to interview Annonya Banik who is transgender. Frankly speaking, I always hesitated to be around transgender people. But she is an outstanding woman. I almost cried while talking to her because my guilt was killing me inside. Even after the struggles she went through with her family and society, she still smiles without any regrets and hopes that maybe one day transgender people will be embraced by these so-called “normal” people who insult them. I asked myself what is so wrong with being transgender.

The Bangladesh government declared transgender people as a third gender way back in 2013. Yet we still hesitate to give them opportunities to work like any other people. I realized changes happen only if you first accept them. IWB’s Executive Director Debra Efroymson said in a talk show that hiring people of different genders or religions does not make a diverse environment if there is no equality and inclusion. I agree; making a diverse workplace is not as simple as hiring. It is about acknowledging the differences and valuing them. We have to treat people with dignity and respect. We have to ensure equality. Only then can we finally claim that we have embraced diversity.

We believe that “Unity is strength,” but forget that strength lies in differences not in similarities. The initiative of IWB of actually creating a diverse workforce is truly praise-worthy. I will be forever grateful to them for giving me this experience and making me realize that rather than waiting for a change, I should make a change myself. That change starts within, in our attitudes and beliefs, and then reflects outward in our behavior. We all can contribute to a more diverse, unified, strong, and caring society.