Students attending American schools are taught clearly about the United States’ image as a melting pot; however, there is evidence to support that, while there is not an official federal stance on the matter (Sengupta), the amount of assimilation required to be legitimately considered a “melting pot” is not being reached. Although similar, there is often confusion about the differences between “multicultural” and “assimilated” communities. By definition, assimilation is the complete “merging of cultural traits from previously distinct culture groups” (Dictionary), while multiculturalism is delineated as the “preservation of different cultures or cultural identities within a unified society, as a state or nation” (Dictionary). Early to mid-1900’s America entertained the idea of a melting pot, where people from all parts of the world would join together and assimilate. It seems, however, that the growing trend has been to treat America as more of a “salad bowl” (Porter), in that people are joining together but instead of merging as one unit, are maintaining a majority, if not all, of their primary culture with little attempt to adapt. This underachievement has left America to unintentionally become a multicultural society. The clear differentiation between expectation and reality brings vast amounts of controversy among the nation’s people. The Puritans established America in their attempt to escape oppression for their religious beliefs, ironically driving out indigenous inhabitants because of their alternative beliefs and traditions. For quite a long period of time, it seemed as if the “Land of the Free” was promoting the opposite of freedom, through child labor, prohibition, sexism, and slavery. Between the 1964 Civil Rights Act ... ... middle of paper ... ...ng to the next “ingredient”; falling collectively into this bowl that is America. Works Cited “Assimilation v Multiculturalism”. www.proenglish.org.2014. Web. Bloemraad, Irene. “The Debate Over Multiculturalism: Philosophy, Politics, and Policy.” www.migrationpolicy.org. September 22, 2011. Web. Dictionary.reference.com. Copyright © 2014 Dictionary.com, LLC. Web. Porter, Rosalie Pedalino, Ed. D. “The Social Contract”. Divisive and Damaging Effects of Official Multicultural, Diversity, Multilingual Policies on American Public Life. Vol.22, www.thesocialcontract.com. Number 4, 2012. Web/Print. Sengupta, Saptakee. “Multiculturalism in America.” www.buzzle.com. June 5, 2010. Web. Teixteira, Ruy. “Defining ‘White’ and ‘Hispanic’ In Majority-Minority America”. Thinkprogress.org. June 18, 2013. Web. U.S Department of Labor. “Affirmative Action: Hiring”. Dov.gov. Web.
...Multiculturalism: Essential Primary Sources. Ed. K. Lee Lerner, Brenda Wilmoth Lerner, and Adrienne Wilmoth Lerner. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 353-355. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 11 Apr. 2014
Deculturization and the Struggle for Equality made me think hard about America’s multicultural past, as well as how I will be able to prevent deculturization from happening in my own classroom.
...d not assimilate to accepted American culture. However, by the time society learned which ethnicities were ‘unassimilable’, the cultures had already begun to take root in America. At first America had a knee-jerk reaction to this realization and began passing more resolutions preventing ‘non-whites’ from entering the United States. However, as America experienced the increase in cultural communities in reaction to prejudice formed by immigration laws, the government learned that only through a loosening of immigration law and lessening of prejudice would America become a true melting pot. The mid-1900s saw this manifestation in America, as immigration laws allowed more people from around the world to immigrate. As prejudice lessened, the cultural communities sprinkled throughout America that created a mosaic became less prevalent and have begun to form a melting pot.
Takaki, Ronald T. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America. Boston: Little, Brown &, 1993. Print.
Hyman, Ilene, Agnes, Meinhard, and John, Sheilds. "The Role of Multiculturalism Policy in Addressing Social Inclusion Processes in Canada" Ryerson University. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. .
This book is mainly inspired by the minority report that Schlesinger write for the task force as a review of the New York State social studies syllabus. In this book, the author emphasized the intellectual flaws and political dangers of the ethnocentric recommendations advocated by the majority. With the summarization of the traditionalist position, he leads a contemporary debate about multiculturalism.
As James Adam said “We have no government armed in power capable of contending in human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other.” The seed of Puritan ideas had been planted in the soil of North America in 1620, by the Pilgrims in Plymouth, Massachusetts. This seed, now aptly watered by the growing population of the America, has grown into a magnificent tree which still lives till this day. Such Puritanical Ideas has rooted itself in the soils of America; men becoming hypocrites; how sex equates to sin; and the secular power of the Christian Church.
The responsibility of the American education system is the instill into children the knowledge and necessary skills to be a productive portion of the society. Numerous studies have shown that high school drop outs are much more likely to have a criminal record than those who have received their diploma. I think that the success of a society as a whole is dependent on the core education of the individuals who make up that society. If you can't provide for your family you will do whatever it takes to get the things you need. This is why it is imperative to create a base of individuals who are capable of sustaining a legitimate living.
Takaki, Ronald. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America. Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1993. Print.
As proven throughout this paper, many of the Puritan ways of life are continuing to be seen in North America. Their ideas about religion, government, education, social mores, and economy are still woven into North Americans’ daily lives. It is interesting to observe how, even after so many decades, the United States has been able to maintain the system of thought on which it was founded.
The United States has a history of being viewed as a superior culture in which weaker cultures must adapt. However, this attitude has been cause of repression and conflict among the different cultures. As a result, activists have worked for years pushing to empower cultures; thus, encouraging unity rather than cultural divide for the strength of our nation as a whole. According to John Ogbu (1978), every "minority" group has a unique history in the United States that needs to be studied, understood, and validated to more authentically understand, support, and educate them. Education experts have responded to the overall push for this unification by developing an interdisciplinary approach in the development of multicultural education.
This essay addresses the questions: What is Puritanism. What is the meaning of puritanism in American history? What is the Covenant as Puritans understood it. How were their ideas about the Covenant applied to their experience in America?
Takaki, Ronald T. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America. Boston: Little, Brown, 1993. Print.
Living in a multicultural society can be seen as a blissful experience. Society has the chance to expose themselves and enjoy human richness culturally. However, people are not taking advantage of that, instead, making unnecessary judgments based on the color of their skin. This mental sickness has caused the widespread of racism around the world. As for today, many people believe that racism has been eradicated throughout every corners of the world. In the American society, they believe in the virtue and purity in its country. Americans like to believe that racism is a thing in the past, and they are the leading example for the world. For instance, America has an African-American president, interracial marriage is legal, and living life in the American dreams—the notion that anyone could achieve
The combination of the best things in the world, the crystallization of culture and wisdom of people all over the world—that is a multicultural society, full of different languages, clothing, customs, and ways of thinking. To work together and learn from each other in order to make the world better, which is what the world should look like. Indeed, some people argue that there are lots of conflicts within multicultural societies like discrimination and terrorists. However, those are definitely occasional, and the mainstreams of multicultural societies are cooperation, integration, and development as a whole.