When you think about diversity you may not have known that it can be compared to Skittles. I know you are thinking, “What does candy have to do with diversity?” But stay with me. Now there are different types of Skittles such as Sour, Original, Tropical, and Wild Berry. These would represent the different ethnic groups such as Caucasians, Hispanics, African-Americans, and Asians. Now people have their favorite flavors; examples would be Orange , Grape, Kiwi Lime, or Melon Berry . These would represent individual people (moms, best friends, girl/boyfriends etc.) However, people love Skittles none the less, no matter what package they come from.

 Diversity is what makes this country so wonderful. Our differences and learning to be accepting of people is very important to this nation and its success. No one should be forced into conformity. We can embrace our individuality and our differences. No one is telling us to like the same type of music or to act the same way. We don’t even have to eat the same kind of Skittle.

            People are so different from each other. None of us are the same. We should be comfortable with ourselves and accept each others differences. This is a true representation of what diversity is. Diversity gives us a chance to understand something from a different perspective other than our own. For example, if you are trying out a new recipe and it doesn’t taste just like you want it to, your neighbor may know another way to make it. You are able to learn so much about a person’s culture, morals, and ethics just by interacting with people outside of your normal circle.

            Another reason why diversity is so important is because it helps us tear down the walls of stereotypes. Now diversity itself may not tear down the walls but our exposure to and tolerance of diversity will. A misconception one creates of a person will be changed when one learns about that person and get to know him or her. A perfect example would be from the movie “Finding Nemo.” Everyone assumed Marlon, who was a clown fish, was supposed to be funny, but this assumption was proven to be false when Marlon attempted to tell a joke. The animated example shows how we don’t get to know someone until we actually talk to that person. If you have never seen the movie then lets return to Skittles. If a woman who didn’t know what Skittles were looked at a package of Skittles she might assume they were a type of hard candy. The woman doesn’t like hard candy, but she decides to eat them anyway. She soon realizes that her assumption was wrong because the candy is actually a chewy soft candy. I bet any money that if this woman didn’t try the Skittles she would have continued to dislike Skittles because of what they appeared to be.

Hopefully, by now the importance of diversity is understood. If not, here is another example. If one day a young man has a bag of Skittles and he opens that bag he should notice that one will rarely see a package that is overrun with just one flavor of Skittles. This is because the manufacturers try to maintain a balance in the variety of flavors. Not all Skittle lovers love just one flavor and the manufacturers try to please everyone. These people are very smart and we should follow their example, try to expand our knowledge of different cultures and backgrounds. This is all about the acceptance of differences.

 So to wrap up my symbolic theory of Skittles I will say that diversity is a part of my life and it should be a part of everyone’s lifestyle; however it may not be because not everyone likes Skittles or is familiar with them. Diversity is very important because it is about accepting and respecting ethnic backgrounds, females, and other minorities in the American lifestyle.