This book focuses on diversity, concentrating on issues of race and ethnicity and on the contributions made, and challenges faced, by the nation's racial and ethnic communities. The easy-to-read, graphically highlighted materials in the book invite students to confront the challenges of living in a diverse society by looking at the past, present, and future. Following an introduction, chapters in the book are: (1) "The Ideal of Equality"; (2) "A Diverse Nation"; (3) "The Civil Rights Movement"; (4) "Issues and Policies"; and (5) "Bringing Us Together." Includes sources for each chapter and an index. (BT)