Why The Word “Diversity” is Just as Ugly as the N-Word

Ava DuVernay hates that word. So do I. “Diversity” for me is on par with the N-word. When you hear it used by white people it clogs up your pores and the heat spreads as you take in the detached casualness in delivery.

It means nothing and will lead to less than nothing. It’s a pollutant that is infecting every blog and media outlet as writers and editors dedicate themselves to throwing it around every hour on the hour.

Why not? There is so much meat on that callous bone. We are thankfully embodying a time when anything directly or indirectly related to the hot button topic of race will surely amass enough attention to significantly minimize the daily concerns of traffic numbers.

So, the best way to remain dutifully engaged is to find ways to embed that dirty word. Anywhere will do. Headlines always work. Then the body of your generic essay could use a boost of it here and there. Be careful not to make your addiction to obvious. Or — shit, just go for it! Mention that empty word as many times as necessary. Nobody cares about grammar or overall presentation anyway. Not even you.

The very idea that in the heat of yet another battle of equality — this time with old white men who make up most of the members of the esteemed Academy — people of color and women are being lumped into a group that is labeled “diverse” is already a sickening realization of how very little progress we’ve made as humans.

Think about it. Really ponder the fact that in 2016 — there is still an urgent need to “Do The Right Thing” as Spike Lee so eloquently expressed back in 1989.

That was so damn long ago. I was a happy-go-lucky teen dreaming about what life in America would be like when I make it back.

Now I know.

Life in America and in most parts of the world where being a person of color is instantly regarded with cautious tolerance and downgraded expectations — can be described as living on the edge without a parachute.

People like to joke about how white people love to play with fire by willingly surrendering to risky activities that challenge their ability to survive under overwhelmingly dangerous circumstances. They make those choices because they can afford to. Life for them is boringly devoid of any real sense of danger so they’re forced to find thrilling ways to be adventurous.

Black people don’t have to go that far. We can basically be driving to work and get stopped by a state trooper who’s having a bad day and decides to take it out on us because he can. And the rest is tragic history.

There are many theories that have been proposed as a way to explain why anyone dripping with ethnicity is automatically regulated to the less desirable sphere of the human race. But there isn’t any sense going over them because it won’t alter what has occurred and what is currently unfolding.

That being said, it’s time to retire the word “diversity” for good. It’s insultingly redundant and only serves as a reminder that once again white people have to swallow their pride and make room to accommodate the poor black folks who are begging yet again for a piece of the damn pie.

It reminds of me when I would beg my mother to the point of annoyance and she would finally relent just so that I would literally get lost. Her response was always a surrender to what she knew wasn’t that big of a deal and yet she stubbornly forced me to plead for it. I’m good at wearing people down so my tactic always worked.

That’s exactly what the D-word represents to me and I suspect Ava DuVernay would agree with my assessment. Asking for acceptance and then being given the green light under the guise that people who look like you will finally be granted admission — since enough of us demanded it — feels like a slap in the face.

And, yes, I am an ungrateful black bitch and a very angry black woman and this is in response to the headache that just won’t go away. The migraine of having to witness media proudly showing off how creative they can be using that word with no end in sight. They aren’t passionate about investigating why it has become so prominent when it really shouldn’t be utilized nearly as much. They just hope and pray that the great racial divide continues to widen.

Diversity is an offensive word and I almost would rather be called a ni**ger because at least the accuracy of that is clear as crystal with no hidden agenda or airbrushing to pretty up a very ugly mess.

We don’t need Hollywood or any sectors of the economy to generously come up with innovative ways to accept other humans as humans. That is definitely asking too much. No need for white folks to go above and beyond to provide refuge for the ones who are consistently left out in the rain.

Don’t bother. You can’t expect someone to accept an invitation to an event after they found out they were purposely excluded from the list.

So, party on! But do it without the D-Word.