(from the Giving Center of Philanthropy Journal's Learning Channel, by Gita Gulati-Partee)
New research from Robert Putnam of Bowling Alone fame suggests that diversity hurts civic life.
Known as a liberal scholar who champions diversity, Putnam reluctantly concludes that his study, the largest ever on civic engagement in the U.S., shows that diverse communities have lower levels of trust and participation in community life, or less social capital.
While diversity opponents and other defenders of the status quo laud the report as evidence that diversity is a net negative, and are already using it to argue against immigration and affirmative action, those of us interested in strengthening communities should not succumb to this oversimplification of the study's findings.
Rather, we should take this report as a reminder that diversity alone - without an honest assessment and shift of power dynamics between privileged and oppressed groups and individuals - is not enough.
To build trust, we must intentionally create spaces for authentic relationships across lines of difference to emerge and, over time, foster new and stronger forms of social capital in truly just and equitable communities.
So, what are "authentic relationships"?...
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Gita Gulati-Partee is a co-manager for the North Carolina Peoples' Coalition for Giving, a partner organization of NCGives. To read more about the Coalition's work, please click here.
