One of the articles I read was titled, “Symposium Introduction: Immigration and National Identity”. It discussed what one’s national identity means in the modern age when immigration is such a frequent occurrence. Florida Senator Mel Martinez spoke 3 sentences of Spanish in his opening address to the floor. This event proves how integrated and commonplace hearing Spanish is in modern America. However in Samuel Huntington’s latest book, Who Are We? He points out that America has historically had an Anglo-Protestant society and that society defines America’s achievements. What concerns Huntington, however, is the total lack of attempt from the Spanish immigrants to acquire the traits and beliefs that make America great. The article raises the
The excerpt taken from Barrio Boy is wrapped around the idea of adapting and accepting change, while being proud of what you’ve had before the adaptation. In the opening paragraphs, we are greeted with writings about a new, nervous Mexican-American student named Ernesto Galarza. Over the course of the text, Galarza develops the central idea of being proud of your heritage, with phrases such as, “... making us into Americans did not mean scrubbing away what made us originally foreign,” and, “It was easy for me to feel that becoming a proud American… did not mean feeling ashamed of being a Mexican.” Through several snippets of the excerpt like, “... never let us forget why we were at Lincoln: for those who were alien, to become good Americans;
Jason Richwine discusses the Latino’s absorption and integration into the American culture. He compares the Latino immigrants with other countries’ immigrants that has rose out of poverty, while the Hispanics have not been rising up out of the lower class after several generations have passed. Richwine mentions that American prejudice might be influencing the Hispanic immigrants not striving. For example, “popular explanations from the left include the
In 2008, Linda Chavez wrote an article for Tucson Citizen, “Immigration policy’s goal should be assimilation”, and in 2009, Laura Marcus participated in a debate under the question, “Should immigrants assimilate?” Chavez, an author and talk show host believes that to be a “successful” immigrant, assimilation is important. Marcus, a student at Yale during the time of her debate, argues that to ask an
America Founded on Immigration When reading “Our Brave New World of Immigration” by Victor Davis Hanson, he argues that we ask too little of our immigrants in today’s society, and that we have entered a new world of immigration that allows immigrants to not be responsible human beings in society today. After viewing the title of the essay, I expected to hear an empowering essay on how far immigration has come. However, after reading the essay I perceived the authors’ persona to be belittling towards immigration. Also, he seems to have tunnel vision towards undocumented immigrants, by not considering that the undocumented immigrants, he speaks of may not even be undocumented immigrants.
In the westward expansion of America, not just Protestants were compelled to cross the nation by the power of God; the people of America believed God had called upon them to accomplish their “high destiny” (para. 7). In the 1800’s American propaganda and numerous documents of the time were full of telling Americans that they were a superior people. It was not long before the American’s adapted this way of thinking and saw themselves excellent enough to be selected by God to carry out His pious tasks. For example, in 1839, the editor of the widely circulated Democratic Review newspaper, John L. O'Sullivan, proclaimed that America was “the nation of progress, individual freedom [and] universal enfranchisement” and was “destined for better deeds” (para. 4 and 7). Not only did O’Sullivan speak highly of America as the nation of “unparalleled glory,” but he went on to declare that moving Westward was the American people’s foreordination to “manifest to mankind the excellence of divine principles” (para.
In the colonial era, through the Revolutionary War, the foundation of America was oratorically clarified as an act of prudence—that is, God led people, specifically the white Europeans, to America to find a new and superior or incomparable societal order that would be the light unto all realms.2 In fact, many settlers also believed in creating a new nation filled with history and stories. Along the same lines, Americans imagined a community created through selectively and elaborated events, myths of origin, courageous stories, and asserted values.3
As a result of their emigration, America was now viewed as “multiethnic and multiracial” and “defined in terms of culture and creed” (Huntington 1). On the contrary, when people traveled across the border from Mexico, their culture was not so widely accepted. Mexican traditions and values were seen as a “serious challenge to America’s traditional identity” (Huntington 2). The “original settlers” of America were incredibly open to people travelling from Europe, but when people came from Latin America, they were
Immigration is deeply rooted in the American culture, yet it is still an issue that has the country divided. Marcelo and Carola Suarez-Orozco, in their essay, “How Immigrants Became ‘Other’” explore the topic of immigration. They argue that Americans view many immigrants as criminals entering America with the hopes of stealing jobs and taking over, but that this viewpoint is not true. They claim that immigrants give up a lot to even have a chance to come into America and will take whatever they can get when they come. The Suarez-Orozco’s support their argument using authority figures to gain credibility as well as exemplification through immigrant stories.
The first of two essay questions focuses on Leo Chavez’s book , “The Latino Threat”. The questions and statements that will be answered include “ What is the Latino threat?, ‘How does he define citizenship?” ,“Identify and discuss two examples of the Latino threat” and “ Identify one policy recommendation and discuss whether you think it is achievable”. Leo Chavez’s book focuses on the guise of Latinos threatening the American way of life. He defines this as “The Latino Threat” , He states that the Latino threat narrative positions Latinos as not sharing similarities with any previous migrant groups into the U.S. and that they are unwilling and incapable of integrating and becoming part of the national community (Chavez,3).
Confident Relationships Built on Language Wouldn’t it be exciting to grow up learning more than one language? Imagine being in Japan for a week on vacation with a group of friends, and one day decided to go to the oldest zoo in Japan, Ueno Zoo. To get to Ueno Zoo, riding the bullet train was a necessity, except knowing which line was the correct line, when to get off the bullet train, or even which ticket to buy was a daunting task. Nobody in your group has the confidence to ask the workers for help since they don’t have the knowledge of Japanese to help them.
“The Immigrant contribution” and “The Quilt of a Country” are two essays that share a similar focus, however, they cover two drastically different sides of the topic. Both of them share the main idea that America is a country made up almost entirely of immigrants. Kennedy’s essay, “The immigrant Contribution”, focuses on how immigrants have affected our country, whereas Quindlen’s essay discusses how people of many different cultures coexist and work together. The essays both concentrate on immigration in America and how immigration has shaped and molded our culture. The two authors describe the many different aspects of immigration in immensely different ways.
Response to “Our Fear of Immigrants” In “Our Fear of Immigrants” Jeremy Adam Smith takes a neutral stance on the immigration and anti-immigration argument. Smith begins by telling the story of a 4th grade class at Jefferson Elementary School in Berkeley, California who try to fight back against immigration laws after a classmate of theirs was deported back to his home country. Smith then goes on to compare the 4th graders to the adults of their town who fight for stronger immigration laws asking his readers what qualities the children possess that the rest of the citizens do not to make them react so differently.
Samuel Huntington’s article The Hispanic Challenge argues that Hispanics, specifically Mexicans, are not true American citizens. According to Huntington, Americans are people who believe in the American creed. However, he believes this creed is being threatened. For some time now, large influxes of Hispanic immigrants have been coming to the US and have brought their own culture with them. The writer of Speaking in Tongues, Gloria Anzaldua, believes that Hispanics have the right to hold onto their culture in America.
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. A country as powerful and influential as America is within industry, politics, and socioeconomics cannot be abstract in definition.
There are many challenges that immigrants face throughout their lives. Many immigrants are able to come to the U.S., but it is not easy as it seems. One challenge that immigrants go through is being able to have respect that the U.S. citizens have. Another challenge that immigrants face is being able to adapt to the new environment. People who arrive in the U.S. might not be able to speak English.