The literature we program for our students is vital for their experience and educational pedagogy as they matriculate through our program. 
I consider it a balanced meal. I want my students to have experiences with various styles, genres, classics, modern, nationalities, etc. If you only experience one thing (dead European composers) then you can easily miss out on teachable moments for students to explore something outside their own perspective and sometimes comfort zone. Music doesn’t have a color, music doesn’t have a race, music doesn’t have a gender…. Music is Music so let’s embrace it all… For Music’s sake.