Thursday, February 10, 2011
America: Where The Streets Are Paved With Gold
After the civil rights movement, the perception was that a WASP identity was not embraceable. Regardless of whether that was one's identity, WASP's were seen as the oppresors. Arguably, this could have led to the revival of embracing ethnicity as second and third generations of immigrants attempted to re-identify themselves. But if many of those immigrants and first generation of immigrants had grown up in a society of WASP dominance, under the "melting pot" ideology in which they felt compelled to shed their cultural customs, how could their children and grandchildren authentically embrace this reemergence of "white ethnicity"? Could they truly reflect an ethnic culture and "customs from the old world" when they themselves had grown up with parents and grandparents who had been able to abandon thier ethnic identities and customs? Or did this reemergence of "ethinc" identity simply serve as a convenient label? And furthermore, should immigrants feel compelled to assimilate and abandon their culture, or do they even have a choice?
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I think to a certain degree one must assimilate when immigrating to a new country. Being able to speak the language and general knowledge of manners and culture are necessary for one to obtain a job. But this necessary assimilation should not require them to completely abandon their culture. The mixture of this assimilation and their own previous culture makes a unique identity for immigrants, which in a sense is what the ethnic movement was about.
ReplyDeleteI do not exactly what term you could use to describe me since I was born an U.S. citizen, but since I moved here from a different country, I am kind of an immigrant.
ReplyDeleteI really wish that immigrants would not have to feel compelled to assimilate and conform, leaving many great aspects of their culture behind, but it is what happens here. It is not much of a choice.
I have tried to keep my culture, but it is so hard with not having anyone else who is like me. I have kept a lot of my culture, but I have also conformed to American ways.