Ethnicities In America

The United States of America, is known to be one of the richest and most powerful countries in the world. It has often been referred to by many as a global melting pot or as locals may say callaloo, due to the amassing of diverse ethnicities, cultures and nationalities. Within its borders, resides immigrants or descendants of immigrants from almost every region in the world, and each has in some way added to the American culture and way of life. America is known for its stance on freedom, it is a nation that values equality and justice, this can be noted in the last few words of their national anthem ‘indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.’ However, for many, high levels of economic and social inequalities are daily struggles, a battle that has been fought for decades to claim the most basic rights, in the pursuit of achieving the American Dream.

Samuel Phillips Huntington an American political scientist, adviser and academic. He spent more than half a century at Harvard University, where he was director of Harvard 's Center for International Affairs and the Albert J. Weatherhead III University Professor. The professor wrote a article called One Nation, Out of Many. In his article he mentions how American came to be and how many immigrants came to America. The article makes some crucial points about immigrants. Also, it mentions how immigrants got to be citizen in the first place. Samuel talks how immigrants can deconstruct America or Americans. Throughout the article Samuel gives example supporting his argument.

The United States of America is recognized around the world as the land of the free. America was founded by immigrants prior to it becoming a nation in 1776. Current American citizens at one point in their family’s history have a family member that immigrated from another country. America has become what it is today because of the different ethnic and cultural backgrounds the various immigrant groups bring to America’s society. Americans should not forget where their ancestors came from. This being the case, America should continue to be a welcoming and friendly nation to the millions of immigrants and refugees that want to come to America.

As of the year 2016, there are an estimated 324,118,787 people living in America. 324,118,787 people consider themselves to be Americans and 324,118,787 people have decided that America really is worthy enough to be called home. These people, whether they were born within the country or emigrated from another country, comingle in this melting pot of a nation, sharing grocery stores and hospitals and neighborhoods and all the ideologies that make up American society, and each of these people have their own lives and opinions and personal beliefs. All of these people, all (roughly) 324,118,787 of them, fall under the definition of an American – a person who lives in America, because there is simply no other way to define what an American is when

What does it mean to be an American? That is the question answered in the two works of literature A Quilt of a Country by Anna Quindlen and The Immigrant Contribution by the one and only John F. Kennedy. While their opinions may be similar, they also differ and vary. However, both of their literary works prove the points trying to be made. America is a place where countless diverse ethnicities have accumulated over time, mingling together to establish the American culture as we know it today.

The period of time after the Civil War and before World War I was a period of tremendous change in America. Although immigration is a major tenet of the United States, due to the changing economy, improvements in transportation, a shifting of the American people to the city, and deepening class divisions, industrialization was the most powerful force shaping the country between 1865 and 1914, followed by urbanization, and finally immigration.

Many nationalities came to America in hopes of a better life for them and their families. However, it was not easy time for them after arriving in America. Each nationality encountered obstacles, some more difficult than others, but in the end they each persevered.

In the time between 1877 and 1920 America saw another significant change to its landscape; this time in the make-up of its inhabitants. With industrialization immigrants increasingly came from Eastern and Southern European countries, Canada, Japan, and even Latin America. By 1910, some 70 percent of the immigrants entering the country were Southern and Eastern Europeans. In fact, in many cities the immigrated population outnumbered the native born citizens. Many states, especially those with meager populations, actively pursued immigrants by offering jobs or land for farming. The industrialization lured millions seeking economic opportunities for their families, while were anxious to escape oppressive governments. Whatever the reason, with these groups came a rich culture that would forever help to reshape the nation.

Informative, contemplative, and different are three words to describe “How Immigrants Become ‘Other’” by Marcelo M. Suárez-Orozco and Carola Suárez-Orozco from Rereading America. “How Immigrants Become ‘Other’” talks about unauthorized immigration. More specifically, this source talks about the other side of the issue of unauthorized immigrants; the human face of it all. “How Immigrants Become ‘Other’” depicts the monster from one of Jeffrey Jerome Cohen’s thesis in the article, “Monster Culture (7 Theses).” The monster seen in the source “How Immigrants Become ‘Other’” is the one that Cohen talks about in his fourth thesis, “The Monster Dwells at the Gates of Difference.” Cohen’s fourth thesis talks about the differences among groups of people in areas of race, gender, etc. and how those differences can create monsters in society. Unauthorized immigrants often get placed into a “different” or “unwanted” group and that causes them to face unfairness in society. “How Immigrants Become ‘Other’” correlates to Cohen’s thesis because unauthorized immigrants can be made into monsters due to differences in race and legal status. The group of unauthorized immigrants can become alienated in society, and the people themselves are sometimes referred to as “illegal aliens.” Ultimately, “How Immigrants Become ‘Other’” is more credible than Cohen 's “Monster Culture (7 Theses)” because the authors have more authority to write about the subject of their source and this source

The video introduces the idea of “in between people. These in between people were of European Decent and could be transformed into Americans by Americanizing them into the White American. They would be apart of a term known as the “melting pot”. A melting of all European Descent to mold them into Americans. Italians, Germans and other European could be apart of the American way of life by being taught the language and customs. This melting pot exclude black people, chinese, puerto ricans, and other people of color. They could never fit or be apart of the pot. Race in some cases in this time of Americanizing is fluid only if you can fit in the white American life style. The races with fairer skin are more fluid and can pass for white American.

By referring back as support to Abraham Lincoln’s opening words in his Gettysburg Address speech, Blow states how the country of unity and equality which Lincoln ever so dreamed of back then is not an existing reality even today. “Those are the opening words of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, and they seem eerily prescient today because once again this country finds itself increasingly divided and pondering the future of this great union and the very ideas of liberty and equality for all.” Blow begins his excerpt by introducing his opinion on the contradicting topic by stating how even though Lincoln dreamed and strived for a united country as seen in his speech, the America seen today is still separating and dividing itself in its own modern ways, creating for itself a future that may not contain the stable equality and unity which Lincoln expressed in his Gettysburg Address speech. Blow seems to strongly support his claim of a modern divided America by using many modern political divisions in today’s America that display this idea of a diverging and separated nation. “The gap is growing between liberals and conservatives, the rich and the not rich, intergenerational privilege and new-immigrant power, patriarchy and gender equality, the expanders of liberty and the withholders of it.” Blow explains how over the past years, the country has separated through a widening of the gaps between different types of groups of people in the country which have very different ideas and beliefs that clash against each other. Blow strengthens his evidence by giving specific examples of the gaps seen in modern America such as the occurrence of secessions in both the

Statistics show that over 11.5 million immigrants migrate to The United States in search of a better life for themselves and their children. Yet, throughout the course of the years, a negative stigma has been associated with the arrival of immigrants in The United States. They have been discriminated against and have been labeled with abasing words. However, the majority of people fail to realize that the individuals who risked their lives coming here, the ones who left their family and friends behind are the most hard-working and persistent people I have come to know because these individuals are my parents. My parents left El Salvador and immigrated to a new country in hopes of a better academic future for me. Sadly, they were not granted

For generations, many Americans have seen their country as a haven for immigrants, a “melting pot,” of different cultures. These different cultures and traditions brought from countries across the world shaped the modern American identity, some would argue. While it is true many cultures from Europe, Africa, Latin America, etc. have contributed to molding the modern American society, immigration history is marred by resistance. Patterns in immigration throughout American history have created a culture de jour that is at the center for the most ardent opposition. From the Irish, to the Asians, and now Hispanics, it is easy to interchange the culture or race, while keeping the hysteria in any given decade from America’s past. The United State’s

In the nineteenth century, rates of immigration across the world increased. Within thirty years, over eleven million immigrants came to the United States. There were new types of people migrating than what the United States were used to seeing as well. Which made people from different backgrounds and of different race work and live in tight spaces together; causing them to be unified. Not only did they immigrate to the United States, there were cities all over the world attracting all sorts of individuals. In this essay, I will discuss the variety of people who migrated, why so many people leaned towards immigration, and why the majority of immigrants populated the cities instead of rural areas like their homelands.

America’s identity is defined differently by every individual. Ideally it was to be a place of freedom and acceptance, identified by its message of liberty and hard-work, however the question arises whether America is a melting pot in which only one culture dominates or it a mosaic of many peoples’ histories. America’s potential and true identity lies within its ability to assimilate and create a natural individualism despite race, class, and immigration standing.