Ethnic Diversity : The Melting Pot

“Taco USA: How Mexican Food Became More American Than Apple Pie” was written in 2012 by Gustavo Arellano, a prolific food author for the Orange County newspaper OC Weekly. This article originally appeared as an online publication in Reason Magazine. Arellano has written books about Mexican food and its role in the American experience. His writings explain how this genre of cuisine has evolved and transformed as it has spread geographically throughout the United States. Growing up in Orange County California with two Hispanic parents, Arellano experienced firsthand the transformation of traditional Mexican dishes into the tex-mex that most American families are familiar with today. The online news site, Reason Magazine, originally published this article to accommodate to an audience of readers who want to be informed but also entertained by the news. These readers care about what is happening in society but are not considered scholars on the topics presented. Although the readers of Reason Magazine might not have any formal knowledge about food and its role in culture, all of them have experienced the importance of a meal in their everyday lives. The author uses the experience and background of his audience to show them the importance and prevalence of Mexican food in the American culture. In “Taco USA” Arellano uses personal stories, ethnic language, and historical information to show his

Modern America is considered to be a melting pot, in which a variety of races, cultures, or individuals gather into a unified whole. The ideas of being a new American for people who have migrated from their homeland to America are to leave behind all their past cultures and practices and embrace their new American ways. Is that what really happens? If it was, would there be still racism in America? The number of people immigrating to America has risen over the years, but so has the number of active hate groups. The idea of unity in the melting pot of America is a myth because of racism, stereotypes, prejudice, and cultural segregation of its people.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 47% of hate crimes are racially motivated. In second place, a tie between religion and sexual orientation account for about 19%. Many people face discrimination every day because of religion, where they’re from, and even what they look like, but it should not be this way. The definition of melting pot is a place where different peoples, styles, theories, etc., are mixed together. Using this definition you could say that some parts of the United states can be considered a melting pot. Living in the united states we are promised certain human rights and we should be able to be who we are without fear of being judged or discriminated against, but for some people that’s not the case. At first glance America may seem like a melting pot because of all the differences between the people here, but after a closer look you can see that those differences are rarely accepted and people are judged for their race, religion, and many other things.

The United States is a multi-ethnic nation. In fact, according to the national census survey results, there are more than twelve races including whites, black Americans, American Indians, Chicanos (Mexican Americans) among many others in the US. With such a rich ethnic diversity, it calls for an equally rich ethnically diverse nursing workforce. An ethnically diverse workforce will, among other things, prove decisive in providing the best medical attention possible, increase efficiency in obtaining and disseminating crucial information and provide patients with options on the ways to attend to them (Huston, 2010). Furthermore, it will be important in enabling the nurses on call to undertake their duties with greater zeal due to the many options

We make assumptions of people based on where they live, what they eat, where they grew up and what occupation they have. Instead of forcing integration on people, personal interaction with cultural diversity could be more effective, which is illustrated by author Jessica Harris. In The Culinary Season of My Childhood, Harris describes her experiences in learning cultural diversity through food. She states, “…and these seasons of my personal and yet very New York childhood gave me the foods of the world on my plate,” (119) Her article discusses the different cuisines that played important parts in her childhood as well as developing her understanding of diversity.

Various ethnicities are gradually taking over the Hawaiian islands. In the article, “Hawaii is Diverse, But Far From a Racial Paradise” they claim that, “Hawaii has the highest racial minority population of any state in the union — 75 percent, according to U.S. census figures” (Garcia, Para 2). This aloha state has become diverse ever since the “plantation days”. Numerous ethnic groups left their homeland and immigrated to Hawaii in order to work in the sugarcane plantations. Today, the variation of race in Hawaii is a factor that makes it a unique country where one would describe it as a “melting pot”. Although cultural diversity builds an extraordinary reputation for Hawaii, there are some drawbacks that cause problems

Food is one of the greatest characteristics that defines where someone comes from. It’s how people bring a “piece of home” with them to the United States. For instance, the stereotypes that people have on Mexican food is outrageous, people think that burritos and tacos are all they have to offer. As more restaurants began to open up, Mexican food became part of the US. There are foods that have been around for so long that they aren’t considered part of a culture anymore, “These days... sales of tortilla chips trump potato chips; and tacos and burritos have become so ubiquitously “American,” most people don’t even consider them ethnic.” (Laboy). It’s important that latin foods are incorporated into the country, but once they’re incorporated

That doesn?t mean I don?t have any biases; because I do. Some I had growing up, others I have now. But either way, I always wanted to eradicate them because they only destroy you and

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me.” Engraved on a slab of bronze, these hallowing words, written by Emma Lazarus, greeted millions of immigrants as they gazed upon the Statue of Liberty with hopeful eyes. Yet, nearly one hundred and thirty years after Lazarus penned her famous poem, there is much confusion over the issue of immigration. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, paralleling Miss Lazarus’s beckoning, “Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me”, recently complained, “When Mexico sends people, they’re

An immigrant brings multiculturalism. This is because culture diversity can be reconciled with national identities which contribute different ways of art, language, traditions and behaviours. This can be analysed in the following. First of all, immigrants are associated ethnic diversity and cosmopolitan in their eating habits. For instance, According to Liu and Jang (2009 , cited in Mazzolari & Neumark, 2012, pp. 1134,1135) data collected from chinese restaurants in midwestern us city ,the coustomer of Caucasian were 60.2% while, Asion were 32.0%. Furthermore,Indian restaurant in Minneapolis/St.Paul. the customer of white american were 75% and 12% of customer were South Asian (Josiam and Monteiro,2004, p. 1134). From this evidence, it can be seen that ethnic restaurants simply serve new immigration from corresponding ethnic group and also expand natives’ consumption choices. The locals of

Most citizens believe that Latino food consists of Taco Bell and are not aware of the rich Latino food options that are available to them in the Richmond Community in California, U.S.A. The reason being that most citizens are not able to tell the difference between Americanized Latino food and authentic. Other examples include things like Panda Express, Rumbi, Pizza Hut, Tokyo Joe’s, and other restaurant chains that indirectly americanize the iconic foods from respective cultures. Many immigrants come,”...looking for better opportunities or need to leave their country due to issues in their

Mormonism is a uniquely American religion, have been founded by Joseph Smith Jr., of New York ("The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints", 2013). Mormonism originated in the 1820s, as described by the Church’s website, when Joseph Smith Jr. was confused and frustrated by the various Christian religions and was unable to choose one to follow. He turned to the Bible, which told him to ask God when he lacked wisdom. So he prayed to God, and was visited by the Heavenly Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. According to one of the members of the governing body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Bruce McConkie (1958), “Mormonism is

Immigration in the U.S. has been greatly shaped by immigrant influence on culture and society. Immigration has had a huge influence on the American society, the first thing that comes to mind is the food. The United States has so many different kinds of foods because of immigration. As mentioned in The Influences of Immigrant Cultures on American Cuisine, “Primary among the influences has been the introduction of immigrant cultures into the “Great American Melting Pot” resulting in an eclectic cuisine unique in the world for its diversity and surprising homogeneity” (2011, 11) . All Immigration in the United States has been influenced by many cultures, for that it was called the “melting pot”. Today, the some scholars believe that the U.S’s population is more accurately described as a “salad bowl”. The term is changing because though the cultures in the U.S. are blended together, but the individual cultures are kept intact. Dr. Mahfouz

Throughout history, the United States has repeatedly defined itself as a melting pot, a notion that derives from the idea that the plethora of different cultures, believes, religion entities, ethnic group compositions, and many more are morphed into a new one. Most recently the blending or melting concept has been reevaluated and the term tossed salad seems to be more appropriate. However, racial differences often result in hostility stemming from stereotyping, discrimination, and prejudice. Nevertheless, this classification considers that assimilation and acculturation varies for immigrant groups hence cultural differences are still identifiable such as in a tossed salad; forming a mosaic of culture and hybrid identities. Culture is defined

One can visit a restaurant in the United States and be hard pressed find a menu that does not carry nachos, tacos, or quesadillas. Due to the United States being culturally diverse, Mexican cuisine has assimilated into the country’s daily eating habits (Casa Blanca Mexican Restaurant, 2014). For example, Casa Blanca Mexican Restaurant (2014) detailed that salsa has surpassed ketchup and mayo as America’s number one, and since 2010, tortillas have been outselling hot dog buns. Casa Blanca Mexican Restaurant (2014) surmised that the popularity of Mexican food in America is primarily due to the influx of Mexican immigrants. As a source of cultural pride, Mexican-Americans have continued to serve their cultural dishes at their traditional Mexican restaurants, and Americans have steady patronize their establishments. Due to our proximity to Mexico, Americans have openly embraced Mexican cuisine (Casa Blanca Mexican Restaurant, 2014).