Essay On Ethnicity And Multiculturalism

“The History, Development and Future of Ethnic Studies” by Evelyn Hu-DeHart mentions several issues young scholars faced during the time of need for multicultural curriculum in higher education. Young scholars were demanding to uncover the missing facts and accredited sources that American history, culture, and society have left out for centuries. The solution the students concluded in solving this dilemma was to bring attention to the need of ethnic studies programs. With enough support from the student body and willingness of universities, institutions were able to recruit professors and thus create ethnic studies programs. According to Hu-DeHart, by providing ethnic studies programs and departments, the academic field would provide, “…a

Music has always and forever will be a strong part of culture. At some point of their life everybody wished they could sing and dance like Michael Jackson. But, that doesn't mean everyone wants to learn how to play an instrument, so all kids shouldn't have to learn how to play music. Every child has a different set of goals and aspirations. Some kids are more musically talented or gifted than others who just don't have enough time to focus on music, so students should be able to decide whether or not they want to play an instrument in school.

Upon entering the class I was anxious, curious, and also oblivious to the ideas I would be encountering. Like other students who had not previously spent time discussing topics of race and ethnicity, I myself had nervous tendencies in assuming that such a class may not strengthen my understanding of ethnic and race relations. I realized I knew little about race or ethnicity, and even the possible similarities or differences. However, I welcomed the opportunity to further discover the possibilities of the class. My understanding of race was concentrated in a definition that could be understood as different skin colors. My limited conception of ethnicity applied to people’s origin or where they lived. It seemed as though my lack of

Anthropologists have always had their discrepancies with the word culture and its background significance. There have been numerous definitions that have filtered through the field, yet not one that everyone can accept or agree with. Franz Boas, an anthropologist in the early 20th Century, and his students, had a difficult time figuring out the objective of what culture is. Culture is about learning and shared ideas about behaviour. Although Boas and his students had a slightly different idea in mind. They ultimately reached a conclusion, a definition of culture in their view that is a contradiction in terms. Boas sates that, “ culture was expressed through the medium of language but was not reducible to it;

In sixteen years of life, I have received an opportunity to experience different cultures, learning styles, and languages. To start of, I am an American since I was born here, but the reality is that I was raised in India. My parents’ main motivation for moving back to India was because they wanted us to embrace our traditions, and most importantly, value our family relationships. We relocated back to the US at the start of 9th grade. This transition was a huge factor for transforming me as a person. I am cognizant of the two systems, cherish both, and realize that these multicultural experiences have encouraged me to grow and mature beyond my years. Relocating from a place is not as easy as one can imagine. When compared to the US, India

Ask any American how they feel about multiculturalism you are likely to get one of two responses: either a cringe or a smile. Those that cringe will say something along the line of “Multiculturalism is the wrong way to look at things. It separates us by saying that everyone is different instead of saying that we are the same and unifying us.” Those that smile will talk about how great multiculturalism is because they get to see aspects of all different cultures on television and on the radio and they are free to explore all the different things that various cultures have to offer. In actuality, one cannot help but wonder if either of these responses reflects the true meaning of multiculturalism? What do

The conversation about race, for American society, traditionally has been thwarted by its tendency to be divisive, as seen in America’s not too distant history. However, the doors for racial discussion have been opened wide, as a result of the case of Rachel Dolezal. The former Spokane NAACP leader, Rachel Dolezal, sparked outcries from American society due to her misrepresentation of her race. Questions have been raised wither race, like Dolezal has tried, can be socially constructed. Mainstream news publishers have released many articles in trying to provide perspective on this question, which personify concepts about race and ethnicity. Respectively, the articles exemplify racial hierarchy, social construction of race, denials of racism, and racialization.

In 1492 Columbus sailed the Ocean Blue. Everyone knows the story of Christopher Columbus; they are taught it in grade school if not before then. When he landed in America by accident, he had no idea that he would be creating the world's largest Melting Pot. This "melting pot" provided means for a new country, made from a mixture of many cultures and beliefs, thus creating a new country with a new and ever-changing culture. One complication with a Melting Pot is that you cannot put people of different race and ethnicity together without conflict.

As I grew up, race was always a weird concept to me. Like I said in my last Short Reflection Essay, I grew up in a small town that was predominantly white and Christian. My father and I were basically the only ones that identified as Arab or Muslim, so I grew up around the concept of being unlike the other kids in my grade. I never really understood why some kids treated me so differently because I looked and acted just like them. My father did not make me wear a hijab, and I was literally born and raised in my small town exactly like them, but because I was not of the Christian faith and had a 'weird' name, I was alienated by kids who thought it was bizarre to be different. I remember in elementary school, teachers would call roll and say everyone's first, middle, and last name. My middle name is Islam and as you can imagine, that did not really go over well with the kids that weren't exposed to anything other than their white parents, predominantly white church, and mostly white town. I got called a terrorist and was asked if my father was a terrorist. I got told I was going to hell because I did not

Everywhere a person goes in today's world, there are bound to be differences. Whether it's race, religion, gender or even the music we listen to, diversity is all around us. Being from the rural community that I'm from, people may say it's hard to find diversity. Little do they know, they are a part of an extraordinary, diverse world. For example, I listen to numerous genres of music. However, orchestra music is not one of them. I went out of my comfort zone to listen to the University of Findlay Orchestra concert on November 8, 2015. To say that my eyes were opened is an understatement.

Since the dawning of racism, human beings have passed judgment on each other based on race and ethnicity. The views of people based on their skin color, place of origin, or their cultural background have caused a stratification of men and women. We now have majority and minority groups, hate groups, ethnic enclaves, segregation, income differences, and have even experienced mass genocide in our world (Carl, 2011). All of these are direct effects of a persons race or ethnicity. These all provide humans with a struggle between each other for various resources. Race and ethnic stratification is an integral example of conflict theory because a competition for resources takes place between people coming from different

I would like to consider my cultural heritage as diverse, but this is far from reality. Over the years as I matured through my teenage years, I was exposed to different cultures by life experiences and travel. I struggled to create both a personal and cultural identity while trying to adjust to my sight loss and with the support of my family I traveled overseas to experience other cultures for the first time. My family opened up their home to a foreign exchange program in turn allowing me the opportunity to travel over to Europe at the age of 16 years old. This opportunity started the slow progression of experiences that would open my mind to others who are unlike myself, especially traveling to a strange place and feeling different in

Few would argue against the idea that we educate ourselves and our society so that we have adequate means with which to understand and interact with elements of the world around us. Subjects such as mathematics, language, history, and the hard sciences are granted immediate and unquestioned legitimacy in our schools, and with good reason. We encounter each of these elements of our lives on a daily basis. We need to have an understanding of these disciplines in order to interact with them, otherwise they are meaningless to us. I submit that the same can be said for the fundamental concepts of music. Music is something that we encounter in our society every day. It surrounds us. Indeed

Ethnicity is defined as the fact or state of belonging to a social group that has a common national or cultural tradition. While this definition suggests a black and white concept, ethnicity is often complex and misunderstood due to the breadth of the topic. Frequently in society, young people inherit their ethnic identity at birth based on the culture they are born into. However, during puberty they often begin to doubt/explore their identity and strive to discover what ethnic group they belong in and not just the one they were assigned. This complex process has spurred psychologists to delve into the phenomenon of how differing cultures undergo this process of “finding themselves”. This research has culminated into a theory based on stages of ethnic development by Phinney & Ong. This paper will investigate further into this topic, in concern to Scarlett O’Hara, a fictional character portrayed in the film classic “Gone with the Wind”.

Multicultural literature is a way of increasing cultural awareness. Through multicultural books many young readers are able to make a connection with their own culture