This is What it’s Like To Live in A Multicultural Society
Dubai is the largest city in the United Arab Emirates and the business hub of the Middle East. It is where you can find almost every nationality scattered in all areas of the 20th most expensive city in the world.
According to the census conducted by the Statistics Centre of Dubai, the total population of the United Arab Emirates is 2,865,560 which is illustrated through a chart below:
Though it’s an Arab country, it’s obviously dominated by expats which is pretty amazing because every day, everyone is daring to live in a multiracial community.
I’ve worked in a company with Indians, Palestinians, Lebanese, Egyptians, and a Bahraini as my boss. Other than that, we have freelancers who are European and American nationals.
There are many advantages of living in a multicultural society and there is no faster way to be educated on these than really having a daily encounter with other people.
A multi-cultural society is a rich society.
When we are exposed to different ways of life, we gain a vast amount of opinions and lifestyles to explore. This can happen in both personal and professional approach.
Companies that are more diverse are more successful.
— Mindy Grossman
There are people who are experts in planning but unskilled with management. Others are good at front-lining but incompetent in setting up foundations. Therefore, a diverse society makes one successful society if united fairly.
So, how can we relate to this?
I’m writing this to let you know that meeting different races every day is a great privilege to be open-minded and learn surprising life hacks.
One good thing about living away from our comfort zone is this:
Instead of facing a book studying about history, life, behaviors, or cultures, we make learning easier by moving a step ahead and living life to the fullest to connect and experience.
What are eight months compared to some others who have lived half of their lives in this cosmopolitan?
In spite of that, through this little time I’ve spent exploring this city, I’ve learned 2 important lessons which I realized that we all need to be aware of...
1. Mind your labels.
Sadly, many of us portray a person on the grounds of race, age, or sex. Even when I was new to Dubai, I was warned to avoid or be vigilant of certain people.
Labels just suck.
When I became close friends with other nationals, it hurt me to find out that there are people who are just so discriminating.
There is no harm in setting up a barrier to be lesser prone to trouble, but for me, I still want to believe that the world is a better place when we become positive towards a person despite his/her cultural background.
There are people out there who are far better than who we think they are.
We only fail to see it because of the labels set before them.
2. Mind your manners.
It’s all about discrimination, I guess. I’ve seen others giving less priority to certain nationalities just because of how they look.
Sometimes, we lose humanity and we are unaware of it.
Not trying to sound hypocritical here, but honestly, I give more attention to people who have humble jobs than to those of high ranks. When I see two people in a hallway, a cleaner and a manager; I would greet the cleaner first.
I make a lot of mistakes when dealing with people, but when we are reminded of the right manners, we get a chance to contribute to making the world a better place by just simple acts like this.
CONCLUSION:
We are people living in a diverse environment. Regardless of the size of our circle of influence, we should be reminded that diversity is not a hindrance to living freely but a chance to access the world.
Diversity is about all of us, and about us having to figure out how to walk through this world together.
— Jacqueline Woodson
Just as what the American writer said, it’s a challenge for us to embrace the unknown and uncertainties together through different paths.
