I am writing in response to Tim Sullivan’s letter in the Feb. 14 issue of The News, titled “Diversity has nothing to do with race.”

Certainly, racial diversity is not the only kind of diversity. But to imply that race is just as or no more important than other markers of diversity like personal taste in music or a major in college is both historically and socially ignorant. To claim that my experience as a listener of Bob Dylan is somehow as reflective of my life experience as the fact that I am Caucasian is ridiculous. Access to education isn’t defined by the playlist on my iPod, but it certainly is affected by my race.

Sullivan also claims that race doesn’t exist. Even if this is the case, even if race as a category is socially constructed, it does not mean that the ideology of race doesn’t have concrete implications in all of our lives. I could argue that a Christian God doesn’t exist. That doesn’t prevent religion from impacting how I operate within a predominately Christian society, even if I am a non-believer.

It would seem, according to Sullivan, that if I recognize racial difference, I am somehow being racist. When did different become a pejorative term? Sameness does not denote equality, nor does difference necessarily signify inequality. That’s the point of diversification: multiplicity. And failing to acknowledge race and its function in our society doesn’t eradicate racism, it compounds it. A commitment to diversity that does not include racial diversity is incomplete and irresponsible.

– Jessica Nelson is pursuing a Ph.D in English at Northeastern.