Assimilating to Fukuyama's Immigrants and Falmily Values Essay

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

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.

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.

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.

In the United States, the cliché of a nation of immigrants is often invoked. Indeed, very few Americans can trace their ancestry to what is now the United States, and the origins of its immigrants have changed many times in American history. Despite the identity of an immigrant nation, changes in the origins of immigrants have often been met with resistance. What began with white, western European settlers fleeing religious persecution morphed into a multicultural nation as immigrants from countries across the globe came to the U.S. in increasing numbers. Like the colonial immigrants before them, these new immigrants sailed to the Americas to gain freedom, flee poverty and

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.

Second generation immigrants are becoming more and more common in different countries, as first generation immigrants start having kids. These children are becoming much more integrated into the countries that they are born in and due to that, many of them are becoming assimilated into that country’s culture. This causes several problems with the parents of these children, as the parents feel that their children are losing their cultural and their identity, while the children believe that the best way to integrate into that country is to become like everyone else there. Several things are thought to correlate with second generation immigrants and their integration into society. Some examples include, education, family relationships, and cultural

Along with its economic classes, American is known for its freedom, its liberty, and the melting pot of ethnicity. This ethnic diversity comes form the immigrant population in the country. However this perfect country is a major falsehood. These untrue ideals of harmony, freedom, success, and equality are deceptive and do not show the struggles that immigrants face when coming to this class dominated country. The immigrants of today do not come from just Europe, but overwhelmingly from Asia and Latin America. “They are driving a demographic shift so rapid that within the lifetimes of today 's teenagers, no one ethnic group – including whites of European descent – will comprise a majority of the nation 's population’ (Colombo, Cullen, Lisle). These immigrants challenge the social myth that everyone has an equal chance in life. They

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

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.

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

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