Assimilating to Fukuyama's Immigrants and Falmily Values Essay

Other concerns of some native-born people in the United States include the loss of job opportunities as they believe that immigrants are taking the jobs that are rightfully theirs. In addition, Rubin reveals that there are contradictory complains that rise from white Americans as they wish for the immigrants to learn their culture and integrate into society but also don’t want them to become accomplished in society. For example, when black people don’t achieve something, some white people attribute this to their laziness and their lack of morals. Meanwhile, if a minority group does accomplish something, like when Asian people climb up the ladder or get into good universities, they are blamed for being “single minded” and “untrustworthy” (138). This paradox is still present in the United States

In the essay “Family Values” Author Richard Rodriguez opens up on a subjective note as he labels himself a middle aged homosexual male in San Francisco, getting ready to tell his parents about his sexuality. The idea of ‘family values’ is presented through the Republican Party and its definition of relating to the large population of immigrants living inside of America. Rodriguez says that “only a society so guilty about its betrayal of family would tolerate the pieties of politicians regarding family values” (Family values, par 5 pg. 221) With that being said He then outlines the understanding of the term family values, as it takes on various meanings based on the country of origin. He then clarifies that the American idea of ‘family value’ is based on children living on their own and learning ways to make themselves distinguish differently. America is a country that takes the concepts to question authority and

Though generalization in nature excludes outliers and exceptions, it serves as a perfect method of exemplification in Rodriguez’s essay, as his argument involves not a specific situation or individual, but rather a national culture as a whole. Throughout the essay, Rodriguez states several themes of American society to support his idea that Americans have weak family values. The principle of departure from home is mentioned early in the essay. “The assurance of family–continuity, inevitably–is precisely what America encourages its children to overturn. Become your own man,” Rodriguez states (Rodriguez 310). Americans see dependence on family members as a terrible weakness. Therefore, committing an act like living with one’s parents during an economically difficult time, such as Rodriguez in fact committed, is frowned upon by society. Going away to study, and leaving one’s guardians is a sign of manhood and success. Ignoring the exceptions to this argument, such as the parents that persuade their children to study near home, or the children who come home with much enthusiasm, Rodriguez simply states what he thinks is dominant in American culture. He mentions particular examples that represent the weaknesses in American family life to make a generalization that allows his argument to appear much stronger. Later in the essay, he goes on to compare American values to those of the Chinese. A comment made by Rodriguez’s

Higher expectations by first-generation immigrant parents also involve as intergenerational conflict in forming the American identity. In the article “Intergenerational

For first generation immigrants in North America, acceptance into the mainstream society requires them to “learn or improve their English language skills and adapt to its cultural practices” (Liu 1). Liu believes second generation immigrants are better equipped to accomplish this because they are either “born in the host country or migrated at a young age” (1). When Nao’s family moved to Sunnyvale, Nao learned English quickly and internalized American values and norms. Nao was young and had “no memory of Japan from when [she] was a baby” (43), which explains her rapid adjustment to America. Unlike her parents, Nao never had a

Immigrants’ refusal to appreciate a fused culture promotes division. Mukherjee questions the idea of immigrants losing their culture for American ideals: “Parents express rage or despair at their U.S.-born children's forgetting of, or indifference to, some aspects of Indian culture,” to that Mukherjee asks, “Is it so terrible that our children are discovering or are inventing homelands for themselves?” (Mukherjee, 1997, para. 28). Many immigrants experience anger when their children no longer hold the ideals of their home country. This tension produced within the household hinders the unity within a resident country’s culture and encourages division within families. Using herself as an example, Mukherjee provides another instance of anger directed at her from her own subculture: “They direct their rage at me because, by becoming a U.S.

Walter Russel Mead explains that most Americans perceive immigration in a way that is “both out of date and factually wrong” (1019). He effectively provides support to his assertion through statistics and factual evidence. Mead uses research from Pew Research Center explaining, “just how much the face of immigration has changed in the past few years” (1019). America is constantly changing and evolving, so along with it immigration evolves as well. Mead supports this statement with, “since 2008, more newcomers to the U.S. have been Asian than Hispanic (in 2010, it was 36% of the total, versus 31%)” (1019). With statistical evidence he is able to claim that the view of immigration many Americans have is dated. As for their view being factually wrong, he also uses a variety of facts and statistics to refute the view that many Americans have regarding immigration. Many Americans worry that the immigrants today are not as ambitious, skilled, or willing to assimilate, but Mead argues the opposite. He says, “93% of Asian-Americans say their ethnic group is ‘hard-working’”(1020). The picture Americans have painted is not relevant to today’s immigrant according to Mead’s main argument. Through his hefty use of logistics, he is able to effectively support his

In the article “Immigration Benefits America,” Bill Clinton; the forty second president of the United States claimed many revelations regarding immigrant’s impact in America. For several reasons, the U.S. strengthens the bonds of the community when allocating the allowance of diverse and varying cultures. Many of these immigrants feel comfortable while living in the United States. He asserted that Immigrants and Americans should blend their cultures and traditions to expand the country. As Americans, they should respect immigrants and in return immigrant should follow suit. On the other hand, in the article “Immigration Threatens American Culture,” Lawrence Auster, an American racialist conservative essayist who wrote on immigration and multiculturalism claimed that immigrants are destroying America and they are harming the economy. Auster believes that these problems are occurring because of the American belief system. The American belief system implies concepts of individualism and equality. Clinton’s argues a rather convincing argument throughout his writings, where prejudices and biases are not provided. On the other hand, Auster’s argument was very judgmental and oppressing in many ways.

The side in opposition to multiculturalism firmly believes that it weakens America by keeping immigrants from adequately assimilating to the core values of America’s Anglo Protestant identity. This side believes that multiculturalism weakens the “social bond” of the United States by denying that immigrants need to assimilate to the language and values of the country’s dominant culture. The rise of non-English speaking communities is seen as a detrimental factor in the goal of achieving unity in American culture. Opponents state that immigrants coming to the United States must always lose their previous culture from their country of origin, to be able to completely assimilate to and fully embrace

As discussed by many, immigrants typically are known to come to America to pursue a sense of freedom that they are not finding in their home country. Whether it is the opportunity for a higher-paying job, a way to practice religion without persecution, or the opportunity to start a family in a safer environment, many immigrants have similar plans. And while people who lean towards a negative outlook on immigration may say that these people take Americans’ jobs and land, others think that immigration gives United States n economic edge in the world, bringing culture to our country.

The United States has been a host to a wide diaspora of people. Immigrants have had to transition from their familiar land to a new-fashioned foreign land that they must consider home. They bring with them the essence of their initial homeland such as customs, traditions and beliefs that inadvertently change the dynamics of culture within the United States. As a result the United States is an extremely culturally diverse nation. The continual changes or accretions that Americans encounter have always been a controversial topic depending on the experiences of individuals and communities that have immigrant populations. This essay will critically explore

These types of beliefs and strong traditions have been good examples for western civilization absorbing their rules and respect. This has been ideal to help restoring their family values.

Immigration has always been a contentious issue in the United States. Benjamin Franklin thought that the influx in German immigration would flush out the predominately British culture in America at the time. (5) Furthermore, a continual wave of foreign cultures began pouring into the American metropolitan areas at the turn of the 20th century. The migration of Italians, Poles, and Jews across the Atlantic Ocean began a mass assimilation of cultural ideology and customs into the United States, yet many people thought that these migrants could not adapt. Today, the American society has become a melting pot of foreign influence; however, many cynics remain skeptical about the incorporation of Latin American people and their influences.

In this article, it also talks about the families who have decided to try and assimilate into the dominant culture. Those who have more mental and/or physical health issues are the ones who have assimilated by forgetting their heritage and the connections that take place. In order to really understand culture we as workers need to take it upon ourselves to appreciate the connections between “ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, class, race, religion, geography, migration and politics and how they have together influenced families in adapting to American life” (Falicov, 1995). All of these things have an impact in some way on the assimilation of different cultures into the ‘American life.’ This article talks about how assimilating people move closer to these dominant values in two ways: 1) the longer time period they remain residents in the United States and 2) the degree of which the individuals rise in social class. It is thought that there are a few ways individuals can remain more comfortable in their ethnicity for a longer period of time, they typically remain in a neighborhood that is among their ethnicity, interact with members of their specific ‘group,’ and have religious ties to their ethnic

The United States is a melting pot for people of all cultures. According to the US Census, immigrants make up almost 12% of the population of the United States and their children make up 20%, meaning that one-fifth of Americans may potentially experience intergenerational cultural dissonance, also known as the parent-child conflict between an immigrant and their America-born child. The