Diversifying identity

Last Wednesday, I attended a lecture by Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen titled "Identity: Enrichment, Violence and Terror." At the lecture, Sen advanced the key theory behind his latest book, "Identity and Violence: The Illusion of Destiny," which provides an interesting perspective on diversity issues here at IU.\nAt the risk of oversimplification (read the book for the whole shebang), Sen's theory goes something like this: When people belong to mutually exclusive groups, there is a lack of common feeling -- such a sympathy or empathy -- between individuals on opposite sides of the divide. The result is that when conflicts arise between these groups, say over cultural differences or group interests, it leads to violence between groups. What keeps us all from going at it like Rwanda's Hutus and Tutsis is that most of us, as individuals, have multiple overlapping identities that we emphasize differently from situation to situation -- and we share some of these identities with people who are members of other groups. \nSo, for example, I'm simultaneously a graduate student, IU student, political scientist, Scotch-Irish American, Ohioan, straight guy, white dude, agnostic, moderate Republican, lover of indie rock, mystery buff, amateur cook, Indiana Daily Student columnist and more. And what keeps me, a mystery-loving political scientist, from taking a machete to a sci-fi-loving political scientist over the last slice of pizza -- besides the laws of the land and the fact that I don't own a machete -- is that we share a common identity that promotes a degree of compassion between us. Problems arise, however, according to Sen, when one source of identity is held preeminent by a group or individual -- when, for example, your religious or ethnic or ideological identity strictly controls your behavior and relations with different groups. In other words, when we reinforce the idea that only one identity really matters, we split individuals from one another who may have commonalities and risk worsening group relations.\nThe next day, at a luncheon hosted by the India studies department, I asked Sen about how policymakers might apply this theory to reduce conflict. He answered by talking about his fears that the British approach to multiculturalism might promote group conflict and the British government's well-meaning attempts to work with self-appointed ethnic or religious community leaders and sponsor religious schools may actually exacerbate tensions between groups.\nBringing us back to IU, we wonder constantly about how to promote diversity. One of the big questions is how to make sure that it goes beyond the empty numbers regarding the demographic groups' respective sizes. So here's an idea: While we have many racial, ethnic, sexual and other identity-based groups here on campus (and I'm not complaining -- you should see me on St. Pat's Day), perhaps we should be looking at the ways to build better linkages among individuals within these groups. Certainly, the University has programs that serve this purpose, such as the Commission on Multicultural Understanding and the diversity office. But what about you? What are you doing?