LOS NOGALES
he word cosmopolitanism
comes from the Greek word
Cosmopolites, which means
citizen of the world. It means going be-
yond thinking for oneself and thinking
as a community. It means that every-
one, irrespective of their differences are
part of a single community. Accepting
and cherishing the differences that each
one of us have, and living in harmony
is being cosmopolitan. It is common to
hear some cities such as New York and
London being called cosmopolitan. One
of the reasons for this is that these cit-
ies are cultural melting pots – here the
word is used as a metaphor to empha-
size on the blending of different cultures
into one. These are cities where different
cultures clash and live in harmony, re-
specting, relishing enjoying and learning
from others. cultures, beliefs, socio-economic status,
customs, abilities, sexual orientation,
shapes and sizes are able to not only re-
spect their differences, but also enrich
and enjoy the same. Learning from oth-
ers, by having an open mind is one of
the characteristics of being cosmopoli-
tan. That way, people are able to identi-
fy with others in a much easier way and
is able to appreciate the differences and
quirks in others. It no longer becomes
difficult to understand why certain be-
liefs are the way they are. While for some
it may seem weird that people pray to
a holy book, for the Muslims it is their
core belief to show the utmost respect to
the Quran. At the same time, being cos-
mopolitan doesn’t necessarily mean to
lose one’s own identity – on the contrary,
it refers to relishing others’ differences.
For me, being cosmopolitan at school
refers to the scenario when all members
of the school community belonging
to diverse backgrounds, based on their Jayanth Ramasamy
Subramanian
T
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Director de Secundaria Básica