One key question is whether minority groups in America should merge into the majority culture or remain their individual identity. The answer to this question is controversial. Generally, White Americans support for assimilation. Others, especially Africa Americans prefer to pluralism, on the other hand[1]. From my point of view, I powerfully advocate that members of minority groups had better maintain their distinct identity, rather than assimilate into common culture. I passionately believe that minority groups have compelling reasons to keep their identity.
The United States, which is the roof of nearly 313 million people from the 2012 Census, is considered as a country of immigration and diversity. According to the U.S. Census Bureau in
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Meanwhile, African Americans and Latino Americans accounted for roughly 13 percent and 17 percent in separate. At that time, an estimated 5.1 percent of the total population in America was the group of Asian Americans and others was about 3.8 percent[2]. It can be inferred from this statistics that minority groups contribute a large number, nearly 40 percent to the American population except for White Americans. Therefore, I find that remaining and bringing into play minority groups’ identity not only bring benefits to themselves but also American society, particularly the diversity of American society.
Why is it crucial to maintain the identity of the ethnic minority groups in America? Firstly, in my opinion, members of ethnic minority groups keep their distinctive identity, which is similar to preserve their origin. If members of the ethnic minority groups are compared with plants, then I think that their individual identity is the roots of plants. It is impossible for a plant to be alive without the root. Similarly, members of minority
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Although there are various ways among ethnic minority groups to identify themselves, almost all ways are the purposes of preserving traditional culture and custom value, minority language, lifestyle, and so on. Firstly, let take a look at Asian Americans in the United States, the development of Chinatowns in many large American cities is typically illustrated examples for the identity of Chinese Americans in America[5]. The Chinese Americans make an effort to establish their private communities on American land. To be more specific, Chinatowns in America are places which keep ancient Chinese architectures, Chinese cuisine and traditional Chinese festivals. For instance, annually the Chinese Americans organize important Chinese festivals. One of the most considerable festivals is the New Year Parade. The New Year Parade is plenty of Chinese custom with an incredibly long traditional Dragon dance. There is no doubt that Chinatowns in America are space which maintains Chinese Americans’ ethnic heritage[6]. Moreover, Chinatowns are places in which Chinese American community share their identity and educate the generation of descendants about traditional culture value of their ancestors. Another example to illustrate Asian Americans’ identity in the United States is the activity of teaching Vietnamese
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Show MoreRonald Takaki a renowned pioneer in the field of ethnic studies has over the years authored numerous books on diversity in American society. As a grandson of Japanese immigrants who became the first black studies professor at UCLA, Takaki for many years has continually tried to bridge cultures and ethnic groups in the United States. In his book “A different mirror: A history of multicultural America”, Takaki addresses the idea of multiculturalism in our society, and also talks about how for many years we have been told to acknowledge the notions that the core principles of our nation uprooted only from one group rather than a contribution from other various cultures as well. The ‘master narrative’ posed by Takaki describes the growing
Recreation of the China into a small district made it possible for tourists to explore a realistic society of China and its cultures. This attracted more ethnic groups to migrate to the district and San Francisco itself. Chinatown exposed language and culture of Chinese
In Appiah's essay "Racial Identities" the author illustrates the point that just because an individual's extrinsic appearance looks as though he or she should belong to a certain group of people it is ultimately up to them to choice their identity. His principal and abiding concern is how we as individuals construct ourselves in a language with the social condition in a persons everyday life. Appiah analyzes the convolution of this process of individuals forming into one identity, emphasizing the opportunities as well as the dangers for self-creation in today’s a culturally mixed world. Appiah’s critique of these large collective identities (whites, Africans, African Americans, and Hispanics) aren't designed to deny their legitimacy but to
Over the past several decades, the racial and ethnic creation of the U.S. population has changed particularly. Minorities are expanding their vicinity in the United States and will keep on doing as such for years to come. The Latino population is driving these changes. While today one of each eight inhabitants of the United States is Latino, it is anticipated that Latinos could represent one of each five occupants. Immigration from Latin America and the attendant growth of the nation 's Hispanic or Latino population are two of the most important and controversial developments in the recent history of the United States.
The ability for people to look at a situation from a different perspective is vital in today’s globalized society. Diversity is the most important, core attribute we each share that gives us the ability to assess new situations through our diverse backgrounds and upbringings. Unlike Patrick J. Buchanan’s argument in his essay titled “Deconstructing America,” diversity is a necessity in America’s culture as opposed to the burden it is described as. Conversely, Fredrickson 's essay titled “Models of American Ethnic Relations: A Historical Perspective,” illustrated a more precise version of American history that disproves Buchanan’s ethnocentric ideologies. Buchanan speaks of diversity on a narrow, one-way street.
Greek-American Ethnicity vs. Brazilian Racial Self Identifications Ethnicity and culture are two things that are eternally linked. In Race, Ethnicity, and Place in a Changing America, a textbook composed of multiple essays touching on these topics, there are many examples that portray the relation between one’s ethnicity and culture. For instance, in chapter five, Greek American Ethnicity: Persistence and Change, the author, Stavros T. Constantinou, explains how Greek-American ethnicity has changed across several generations. Furthermore, in chapter twelve, Alan P. Marcus, the author of Racial Self Identification among Brazilian Immigrants in the U.S. and Returnees in Brazil, focuses on how a Brazilian’s racial identification may vary depending
A Bumpy Ride on the Even Road: Still Separate and Unequal with Pluralistic and Two-tiered Pluralistic Society in the United States In order to illustrate the U.S. politics, especially in terms of racial and ethnic minority issues, many political models used as analytical tools to understand the political resources and opportunities of U.S. racial and ethnic groups in contemporary U.S. society had been proposed. Among these politically important models, two of the most fundamentally important are Pluralism and Two-tiered Pluralism (DeSipio, 2015: Week 2 Lectures; Shaw et. al., 2015).
“At certain times I have no race; I am me.” “I belong to no race nor time. I am the eternal feminine with its string of beads.” “I have no separate feeling about being an American citizen and colored.” Throughout the article the authors show numerous ways to good core value.
Chinatown, the home to many Chinese immigrants, holds one of the most historical museum in New York. 215 Centre St. NY, 10013 might not be a noticeable address at first glance. But this address is actually the location of the Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA). Surrounded by the Chinese natives of the area, I began to look at their age, gender, race/ethnicity, and the different languages they use. When I first came on a Monday morning there were not many people around the block.
Everyday the future in America looks brighter for the issues dealing with race and identity. Brave souls are not letting racism, class discrimination, or sexism hold them back anymore. Furthermore, the fight for a balanced society that pushes for equality is on the horizon. As we close on an era, based on purely the skin of the person, we need to analyze the impacts of the Ethnicity paradigm and Class paradigm on politics of the 20th century. Race and Ethnicity are used interchangeable in everyday conversation, however; they are not the same.
Minorities have made significant strides towards equality in American society. In America the minority groups are being stereotype due to their ethnicity. The media has had a significant impact in passing the stereotypes to the work that have convey negative impressions about certain ethnic groups. Minorities have been the victim of an industry that relies on old ideas to appeal to the "majority" at the expense of a minority group ideals (Horton, Price, and Brown 1999). Stereotypes have been portraying negative characteristics of ethnic group in general.
Similarly, David Hwang’s 10-minute play “Trying to Find Chinatown” centers on an encounter between Ronnie, a Chinese-American street musician, and Benjamin, a Caucasian tourist from Wisconsin who identifies himself as Asian-American, in the busy street of New York. In the play, “each character defines who he believes he is: Benjamin is convinced he is a Chinese American, and Ronnie sees
The conceptualization of racial and cultural diversity, has taken
There’s a myth about Asian Americans, that generalizes them into one group. People create false images of us through stereotypes. These stereotypes have been manifested in books, movies, and literature, but they have repercussions for Asian Americans in society. We are often treated as foreigners, people leading us to believe that we don’t belong in American society, and that we have no purpose being here. Stereotypes are natural things that people will talk about.
Explaining Ethnorace Thesis: With existing schematization presenting a range of issues in society, Alcoff’s theory of ethnorace provides effective ways to resolve the issues present within it. Fanon and Young on Schematization: Fanon and Young’s texts provide excellent accounts that allow schematization to be understood from different perspectives. In The Lived Experience of the Black, Fanon recounts and compares his experience around other “black” people (like himself), and around “white” people. These experiences, according to Fanon, brought about the experience of skin color.