I Am a Cultural Leader

She tells about growing up in a “monoculturalist” society where the focus was on only white middle class culture. She argues that monoculturalism was created by limited education. In school students were only taught about U.S., European and Greek history and that this led students to view the world from a European perspective. The author reflects on how people were classified in very few and very broad racial and religious categories while ignoring the actual vast differences and diversity existing in the U.S. and beyond. In order for this very narrow perspective to change and for Americans to create a true multiculturalists society.

I was born into a multicultural environment that allowed me to understand new perspectives and the world around me. At the start of my life, I was born into a poor Mexican family with no hope insight for a future that we could start anew. Through this, I learned humility, an understanding that no matter who we are or how we started, we can become so much more than we were before. By the time I was 5, my father and mother, poor illegal immigrants, had created an empire for themselves from the basis of a flower shop, and just like Andrew Carnegie, they became inspirations for many poor Mexicans back in my hometown of Cuernavaca, and  icons for myself. Their newfound riches provided me with ambition, a new understanding into the importance of

I am the product of a military upbringing, which allowed me to live in different parts of the world. This allowed me and my family to explore what other cultures are like as well as realize that Americans and our way of life is not the only culture that exists on the entire planet. I realized that the negative perceptions that other Americans had of people of German and Asian descent was directly related to lack of exposure and an unwillingness to educate ourselves about other cultures.

What is it like to be born in one country and then grow up in another where people speak a different language and follow different traditions? And is it easy to grow up in another country where members of the native country pressure one to be "one of their own"? If anyone wishes to find insightful and interesting answers to these questions, one should go no further than read Lac Su's I Love Yours Are for White People. In this book, Lac tells the story of his child- and adolescent-hood, growing up in "urban" Los Angeles as a Vietnamese living with a "traditional" Vietnamese family. As Lac demonstrates in the book, he once was between two worlds, sometimes unable to figure out who he was, and sometimes rejecting one or the other altogether. After going through difficult and painful experiences, Lac learns to embrace his ethnic identity. He realizes that he is a Vietnamese-American who belongs to both cultures. He learns to appreciate his Vietnamese background but also acknowledges that he is partly American because some Vietnamese habits are so uncommon for him.

The most useful culture assessment tools available to organizational leaders is the leadership competency tools. Here’s why? These tools relate to diverse cultures in the areas of organizational performance, productivity, and unity. This form of assessment has the potential of uncovering possible deficits in the leaders' different cultures and give the manager an opportunity to overcome perceived shortcomings. The leaders may require additional cultural intelligence training to be more effective. However, Human resource officials select future global leaders because these leaders already have acquired job-related technical knowledge (Daher, 2015). Groups at times often overlook interpersonal skills and cultural knowledge. For these reasons, initial cultural assessments are essential for new leaders.

Inclusion of other cultures is a result of marrying into another culture, children become independent from the family, language barriers between the parents and children, distant from family left behind in old country, etc. Virtually every ethnic group has planted its footprint into the history and daily life of the United States (Times – News, 2008). Due to the geographical proximity of Latin countries, Hispanics have played a vital historical role in the development of this country (Times – News, 2008). The way to ensure that the family retains and remember their culture is to maintain their cultural heritage through the knowledge of one’s cultural history and how the people in that culture dealt with struggles and how they handled difficulties in life to know how their source of strength is sustained. History informs us that societies are the result of collective contributions from the various social and ethnic groups (Times – News, 2008). The United States contains the most diverse combination of cultures in the Americas, due to the contributions made by all the native and foreign cultures embraced within this nation (Times – News,

Lawrence W. Levine approaches the issue of ethnic relations in a slightly different light in his book, “The Opening of the American Mind”. He focuses on the two central components of the entire matter: One-way Assimilation (the melting pot ideology) and Cultural Pluralism, given that the two other models (Ethnic

Ethnicity, race, and other diverse characteristics play very important roles in today's society. James Bank believes that “social science specialists in ethnic relations have abundantly documented the fact that ethnicity and ethnic cultures are integral parts of our social system” (pg 5). What children learn in elementary school about social studies and the history of their country and heritages will help determine what kind of citizen they will be to society when they are

To begin my personal informative essay on diversity in the United States, I would like to point out what information has had the most influence on how I better understand and relate to others different from how I did in the past. I do not feel as though this class taught me any more than I already know about other races and ethnicities, in terms of, how their ancestors came to America, or what hardships particular racial or ethnical groups have grown through in the group’s history in the United States. What I do feel like this class has done for me is, put into prospective of how often and frequent prejudice and

Imagine living in a world where everyone is the same. Everyone shares the same ethnicity, language, background, cultures. Living in Miami, for me, this is a hard concept to imagine. My whole life I've been surrounded by different cultures, people who speak different languages, eat different foods, share different stories and backgrounds. Attending Monsignor Edward Pace High School my ninth grade year changed nothing. Pace was, and still is a direct representation of the city of Miami, a cultural melting pot, filled with so many different seasoning of backgrounds. With this melting pot filled with so many different seasonings,however, it becomes easy for the hot water to rise, and feel as if there isn't any commonalities to share. As a young adult, I use my influence on my peers, to stir this melting pot to remind young people, who are essentially the futures of tomorrow, that in all our differences, there is still so much similarities.

Although new generations of men and women born in the United States consider themselves members of a new culture —the American culture— they also acknowledge a bond, even if slight, to the country or countries of their ancestors. Most importantly, nevertheless, is that quite often some consider themselves entitled to the good and bad of their country of birth, with exclusion of the newcomers, of course. Quite often, these exclusionists are not willing to mutual

Growing up, I lived in the Ironbound Section of Newark, New Jersey. The location gave me an advantage to my cultural understanding and acceptance. During my childhood and early adolescence, the museums and local art were my teachers and playground. It was just as common that I would be wandering around the halls of the Metropolitan Museum of Art or the Natural Science Museum as playing outside in the fresh air. Being submerged in the culture of New York City and Upper New Jersey allowed me to develop racial and cultural tolerance due to being surrounded by immigrants from various countries. Those immigrants created the fabric of the community, including my immediate

The American Dream drew millions of immigrants from all the world for centuries and as a result, the U.S. is most diverse country in the world. In the past, these migrants were expected to leave their old cultures behind -- such as adopting new, more English-sounding last names -- and assimilate into this new American one. However, people today appear to more accepting of the diversity. Many of those who immigrate to America try to hold onto their heritage, creating subcultures in some areas (Macionis 48). This change is good. Being around people who have led very different lives from each other is a refreshing learning experience. It can open eyes to how the world works and how that the way that one person sees it is not the only way. A quick

The journey that is my life all started in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I was born and raised here for 8 years of my life. The area itself was very aged in a way. The building types resembled the design of native pueblos because of the founding members of the town. The thing that I felt that distinguished the city from the rest would be the ethnic diversity (or lack of). The town was made up of Mexican, Native American, and white population with not much deviation from this archetype. Being one of the few Indians in the

Growing up in Miami I have gotten accustomed to the cold and impersonal interactions attributed to living in a big city. Although I enjoy all of the opportunities that are presented by metropolitan areas, it disheartens me to know that most people in urban settings do not know their neighbors. Via avian perspective, you can see the large-scale segregation of classes and ethnic groups. Little Havana, Little Haiti, and Little Puerto Rico are just some examples of the neighborhoods I have called home. As a multiracial child, I found it difficult to fit in when the typical icebreaker question was “Where are you from?” “Me?” I would ask. Knowing there was a narrow range of accepted responses I replied, “I am from here - from Earth... but more importantly, where am I going?” It seems a natural human characteristic to assign greater importance to our past experiences than to our aspirations for the future. In order to achieve what I want with my life I know that I must not dwell on the past but focus on the future.