Diversity in Everyday Discourse: The Cultural Ambiguities and Consequences of "Happy Talk".

Few words in the current American lexicon are as ubiquitous and ostensibly uplifting as diversity; however, actual meanings and functions of the term are difficult to pinpoint. In this paper we use in-depth interviews conducted in four major metropolitan areas to explore conceptions of diversity in everyday discourse. Although most Americans respond positively to initial questions on the topic, our interviews reveal that their actual understandings of diversity are undeveloped and contradictory. We highlight the tensions within the discourse between the idealized conceptions and complicated realities of social difference as well as the challenge of balancing the recognition of group-based commitments against traditional values of individual freedom and choice. We also find that respondents define diversity in abstract, universal terms even though most of their concrete references and experiences involve interactions with racial others. We situate these findings in the context of the unseen privileges and presumptions of whiteness in mainstream U.S. culture. The paper concludes with a description and discussion of the inability of respondents-even our most articulate and politically-engaged respondents-to talk coherently about society inequality in the context of a conversation focused on diversity. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]