Cultural Pluralism
Cultural pluralism is an idea that has been changing since the beginning of the US. Early German communities, such as Sterns County in Minnesota, have been known for their traditional German heritage. The community was ran by the “autocratic priest, one where many farmers still spoke German with greater ease than English.”[10] It seemed that the community was completely isolated from federal laws such as the Separation of Church and State. An example would be that the local tax money went to the Catholic school that only taught in German rather than English. There were many backwards inferences as to how this community flourished, yet it seemed to work, since people stayed there. It is almost like the Germans who lived there had a fear of Americanization, yet wanted to enjoy the comforts of its freedoms.
The early mid 1800’s saw a great change in America. With the many problems brewing in Europe, it seemed that immigrants had no choice and were scared of the unknowns in America, but once they arrived, their lifestyles would improve drastically most of the time. In the end, the push and pull situations in Europe allowed people to immigrate to the US and find many perks of mobility within their lives.
Teddy Roosevelt was discussing the aspects of immigration and how the new immigrants should forget their heritage and develop an “American” way of life. It is discussed by Roosevelt that, “We cannot afford the low wage rates and the merely seasonal industries which mean the sacrifice of both individual and family life and morals to the industrial machinery.”[11] Roosevelt was trying to iterate that immigrants were working too much and that they were not taking the moral guidelines of the family unit into effect, which must have been his many ways of Americanized way of thinking.
As newly diverse immigrants emerged over time, activism within certain immigrant groups had grown. People such as Ruben Martinez challenged immigration reforms that were not in their favor. Although the groups may not be united like they were at one time, the concept has still changed. Martinez claims, “Many activists…think the mainstream institutions have all but abounded the undocumented…..The undocumented have begun advocating on their own behalf- forming for instance, street vending cooperation and independent day-laborer unions.” [12]
When it comes to topics such as religions, modern immigrants do not necessarily conform to Christianity. Many Asians have brought their religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism with them to the US and built temples. Many eastern immigrants have moved to the US after, “The immigration Act of 1965, which ended national origin quotas, was followed by an influx of thousands of immigrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia.”[13] There are also struggles that Asian immigrants have to endure with their religions. When they want to build churches, sometimes opponents use local laws such as zoning to implicate their opposing agendas.
The topic of cultural pluralism can be one that has been evolving as immigration has within the US since the turn of the century. With the emergence of refugee forms of immigrants coming in after WWII, the style has changed dramatically. The turn of the 20th century immigrants like Italians did not always see family from their homeland once they are within the US. Now with modern technology like cheap airplane tickets, “Modern forms of transportation and communications, in combination with new international forms of economic activity in the new global marketplace, have meant that more immigrants today are more involved in economic endeavors that span national borders.” [14] The concept of pluralism is becoming more popular to modern immigrants since it is more socially acceptable for them to do so compare to earlier historical accounts. What makes it so “different today is that immigrants are arriving for sovereign countries, with established nationalist ideologies and institutions, and are a potential basis of support for government projects, policies, and leaders in the homeland” [15]
People like Carmen Rodriguez are a prime example as an immigrant with nationalist ideologies. She is a successful immigrant businesswoman who found her calling with Mexican furniture. Her story was not easy since she faced multiple accounts of discrimination, but she overcame boundaries and became successful. Rodriguez claims that “becoming a US citizen has not made her any less Mexican, although what she has achieved in the US is something she could never do in Mexico, that is what makes her feel like an American.”[16]
The concept of cultural pluralism has changed just as much as the types of immigrants who come to the US every year. Cultural pluralism can be debated by many people, but for immigrants, it is something they can use as an adaptation tool. In the end, the American dream, whatever that personal reflection may be, can come true.
Cultural pluralism is an idea that has been changing since the beginning of the US. Early German communities, such as Sterns County in Minnesota, have been known for their traditional German heritage. The community was ran by the “autocratic priest, one where many farmers still spoke German with greater ease than English.”[10] It seemed that the community was completely isolated from federal laws such as the Separation of Church and State. An example would be that the local tax money went to the Catholic school that only taught in German rather than English. There were many backwards inferences as to how this community flourished, yet it seemed to work, since people stayed there. It is almost like the Germans who lived there had a fear of Americanization, yet wanted to enjoy the comforts of its freedoms.
The early mid 1800’s saw a great change in America. With the many problems brewing in Europe, it seemed that immigrants had no choice and were scared of the unknowns in America, but once they arrived, their lifestyles would improve drastically most of the time. In the end, the push and pull situations in Europe allowed people to immigrate to the US and find many perks of mobility within their lives.
Teddy Roosevelt was discussing the aspects of immigration and how the new immigrants should forget their heritage and develop an “American” way of life. It is discussed by Roosevelt that, “We cannot afford the low wage rates and the merely seasonal industries which mean the sacrifice of both individual and family life and morals to the industrial machinery.”[11] Roosevelt was trying to iterate that immigrants were working too much and that they were not taking the moral guidelines of the family unit into effect, which must have been his many ways of Americanized way of thinking.
As newly diverse immigrants emerged over time, activism within certain immigrant groups had grown. People such as Ruben Martinez challenged immigration reforms that were not in their favor. Although the groups may not be united like they were at one time, the concept has still changed. Martinez claims, “Many activists…think the mainstream institutions have all but abounded the undocumented…..The undocumented have begun advocating on their own behalf- forming for instance, street vending cooperation and independent day-laborer unions.” [12]
When it comes to topics such as religions, modern immigrants do not necessarily conform to Christianity. Many Asians have brought their religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism with them to the US and built temples. Many eastern immigrants have moved to the US after, “The immigration Act of 1965, which ended national origin quotas, was followed by an influx of thousands of immigrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia.”[13] There are also struggles that Asian immigrants have to endure with their religions. When they want to build churches, sometimes opponents use local laws such as zoning to implicate their opposing agendas.
The topic of cultural pluralism can be one that has been evolving as immigration has within the US since the turn of the century. With the emergence of refugee forms of immigrants coming in after WWII, the style has changed dramatically. The turn of the 20th century immigrants like Italians did not always see family from their homeland once they are within the US. Now with modern technology like cheap airplane tickets, “Modern forms of transportation and communications, in combination with new international forms of economic activity in the new global marketplace, have meant that more immigrants today are more involved in economic endeavors that span national borders.” [14] The concept of pluralism is becoming more popular to modern immigrants since it is more socially acceptable for them to do so compare to earlier historical accounts. What makes it so “different today is that immigrants are arriving for sovereign countries, with established nationalist ideologies and institutions, and are a potential basis of support for government projects, policies, and leaders in the homeland” [15]
People like Carmen Rodriguez are a prime example as an immigrant with nationalist ideologies. She is a successful immigrant businesswoman who found her calling with Mexican furniture. Her story was not easy since she faced multiple accounts of discrimination, but she overcame boundaries and became successful. Rodriguez claims that “becoming a US citizen has not made her any less Mexican, although what she has achieved in the US is something she could never do in Mexico, that is what makes her feel like an American.”[16]
The concept of cultural pluralism has changed just as much as the types of immigrants who come to the US every year. Cultural pluralism can be debated by many people, but for immigrants, it is something they can use as an adaptation tool. In the end, the American dream, whatever that personal reflection may be, can come true.