.bodytext {float: left; } .floatimg-left-hort { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right: 10px; width:300px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 10px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} I heard on the radio recently about another forum on how to keep young people in Iowa. The problem is that 20-somethings take advantage of the excellent, affordable education provided by our state university system, and then after graduation, they head off to Minneapolis, Kansas City or Chicago to pursue their career and social goals.

It reminded me of one Sunday afternoon on the soccer field. I asked a fellow parent if she had signed her kids up for Spanish lessons. “Oh, no,” she said. “My kids don’t need that. Those people should learn to speak English if they’re going to come here.”

Suspending immigration issues for a moment – legal or illegal – I was appalled at this woman’s ignorance. Foreigners may be coming to the United States in record numbers, but the vast majority of them are not settling in Iowa for the same reasons that young people don’t settle in Iowa.

Iowa is homogeneous. The demographic profile of this state is old and white. We live in a global economy; anyone who puts gas in his or her tank, shops at Wal-Mart or buys strawberries in December knows this. We also live in a global society. And if we’re all going to get along peacefully, then it is very important that we learn about one another and, eventually, appreciate that we’re all Homo sapiens.

Acquiring a new language skill is one way to gain an understanding of different people. Traveling abroad for an extended period of time is another. Spending one weekend at the Latino festival or the Greek festival in the state’s larger towns is not enough exposure. Ask any teacher or advertiser, and they’ll tell you that learning takes place only after frequent repetition. Living in an area with balanced diversity is the best opportunity to learn about and from others who are not like you, because it is unavoidable, continuous, interesting and sometimes fun.

Chicago has the largest Polish population outside Warsaw. Minneapolis boasts of its Ethiopian community. In those places, your neighbor is as likely to celebrate Ramadan as Christmas. And you can choose to eat Italian food prepared by first- and second-generation Italians. It’s not the same as the fare at Olive Garden. Believe me.

If city planners would focus on diversity, I can guarantee that the typical Iowan would not be represented on CNN by a farmer in boots and denim overalls. In order to change perception, Iowa needs to be in the spotlight for more than just the State Fair, the caucuses and RAGBRAI, events where people of color are absent in the virtual reality world that is television. Instead, there would be more national media at the Des Moines Arts Festival and other similar events where you can walk among the booths and see people of all ethnicities, backgrounds and ages.

The young, middle-class, soon-to-be well-educated adults quoted on the radio program indicated that what would keep them in Iowa are good jobs, affordable housing and a sublime quality of life. That’s good news, because those things will attract all kinds of middle-class, well-educated, highly skilled people to Iowa.

I am pleased that city planners are investigating ways to develop a contemporary populace in Iowa. I want them to know that in order to be successful, they should stop focusing on youth and start focusing on color.

Angie Chatman lives in Des Moines and will begin work in January on a master of fine arts degree in creative writing through Queens University of Charlotte in Charlotte, N.C.