Diversity in the United States Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Diversity in the United States - Term Paper Example Diversity in the United States I had always known about the settlers from Europe and their conflict with the Native Indians in the early days, but I had not realized just how many different national origins have made up the people of the modern United States. Looking at modern American culture, with such different styles as Hollywood films, rappers, classical orchestras and all kinds of local folk, country and rock music it is obvious that a creative mixture is going on. Learning about the different groups, such as Africans, British, Italians, Spanish, Japanese, Puerto Ricans, Mexicans etc, has opened my eyes to the rich cultural history that we all share. When I see this big range of cultures, this helps me to understand that immigration is a permanent and healthy tradition that America needs to manage well. People want to come here, because it is a great country to live in, but at the same time, we need to find ways to accept each other and get along peacefully together. My own background already combines two ve ry different cultures, since my parents are from the Philippines and Jordan. I grew up in a Muslim country, with a Muslim father and Christian mother. I can see that there are many differences between these two major religions, but what I have learned is that both of them have a belief in God, and both of them deserve our respect. I have seen how Muslims looked down on Christians (in Jordan) and Christians looked down on Muslims (in the United States) and this shows me that people are influenced by their own place of birth, rather than by any particular logic. I think my mother must have endured quite a lot of hardship to be married to my father and I think it took great courage for her to bring me to the United States and start a new life in a new country. She has been able to find a job, and I have been able to learn English, because this country welcomed us at a time when we needed a safe place to go to. Seeing this against the background of America’s history of diversity makes me very proud to have joined the many thousands who have brought their own culture into this country. I think that in the next thirty years or so there will be more immigrants to the US, including some from China, because of the attraction of the lifestyle and the freedom to think and speak what you want to. I hope that there will be a better agreement about immigrants from Mexico and the South American countries, because I believe that this has the potential to cause some tensions if it is not regulated properly. One big change that I see coming in the next thirty years is that there will be more people like myself who have a mixed heritage of more than one culture. Hispanic and Asian populations are growing faster, and so the proportion of these groups is likely to rise (Census Bureau, 2011). I think this is a good thing, and it will make people generally more tolerant. This is because second and third generation immigrants tend to marry outside of the narrow culture of thei r parents, and this will bring about more mixing of cultures, and more children who have the benefit of seeing things through different perspectives. A big challenge that the U.S. faces is the fact that different cultures have strong views about some issues, such as