Immigrant America By Portes And Rumbaut

The topic of immigrants has been debated for centuries, and has been an even larger topic for discussion since the attack on the two towers in 2001. Many people contemplate whether immigrants are a reason to be scared, not; and if so, then why? If one finds themselves asking this conflicting question, Jeremy Adam Smith’s article, Our Fear of Immigrants, provides an answer. Relying on research from psychologists and sociologists, Smith gives sufficient evidence for why immigrants bring such intense feelings of both hatred and compassion, and recommends a way to increase empathy toward them.

America has, is, and will always be a nation of immigrants: the great melting pot. In the years that have passed since Emma Lazarus' poem was inscribed on the Statue of Liberty "the golden door" Americans have seen times when the door was open wide and times when it was close shut to most immigrants (Sure 4). Many people look at the present immigration problems as a purely modern dilemma. The truth is America has always struggled with the issue of immigration, both legal and illegal. Changing times, however, makes it imperative that our government reexamines and adjusts today's immigration laws to today's standards. Those standards, however, are not easily defined. Too often the issue of

Peter Marin’s article “Toward something American: The Immigrant Soul” explains the subtle but noticeable difference between American life and American culture. American culture is defined as primarily western, but is influenced by Native American, African, Asian, Polynesian and Latin American cultures. (Wiki) Marvin explains that American culture is not much more than a mixture of past cultures. American life is slightly different. Marvin writes American although influenced by past cultures struggles to find home. Marvin states “home” is for us, as it is for all immigrants, sometimes to be regained, created, discovered, or mourned”. There are qualities and aspects that make up culture which can be defined as American or Western. In this essay we will explore the distinction between life and culture and if culture can be easily be distinguished between American or Western.

Social capital is the is the social connections that allow for social interactions in which an individual has opportunities to build bonds, help others out, and affect change for the better. When the social engagement is reciprocated, it can produce benefits for the multiple individuals engaged in the activity and so further the circumstance of the society.

Social capital is defined as the capacity of social institutions, such as families, churches, schools, or other community organizations to make an investment of attention and advice, support and concerned interest in other community members according to reformer L.J. Hanifan. As a dependent of the community social capital is applied to my everyday life. It helps me to obtain resources for my education such as scholarships, teaches me how to work together with my peers, becoming a positive role model to youth, and build trusting relationships with others in the community. Social capital is seen as a support group from leaders in the community.

There are many questions arises when it comes to the way different cultures manage everyday life. In the book, The Immigrant Advantage by Claudia Kolker, gives us some explanations on their survival techniques. This book can help some Americans like me; live a healthy, happy and hopeful lifestyle. The Author suggests that some of us Americans can learn a few tips on immigration living. To support her information the author goes on a journey and talks face to face to some of the immigrants that moved to the U.S. with their families. Also she gives some details on her past life experiences that helped her cope with life expectations.

The United States is set apart from other countries in that we have a unique economic, political, and spiritual system from the rest of the world. This also poses a unique problem to our society: Since we possess desirable aspects as a country, we have to deal with the issue of immigration. Legal immigration is a great benefit to our society, and if we can control and harness immigration, it will better our country for years to come. While illegal immigration is an enormous problem that needs to be solved, legal immigration is a great asset to our economy and American society as a whole.

Immigrants have been migrating to the Unites States for years. Many people in the United States have different opinions on immigrants: some are negative and some are positive. Some Americans assume that immigrants are here to destroy the United States, but immigrants are here for many purposes: to support their families, succeed in their future, or to escape violence occurring in their home countries. Many Americans think that once an immigrant has settled in the United States that he or she will right away get a job or quickly learn English. Imagine moving to a new school not knowing a single person. You will feel anxious or even discouraged. Now just imagine arriving in a new country and not knowing anyone and you can’t speak English. Well, that is how millions of young and adult undocumented immigrants feel every day when trying to fit into the American culture. Life is hard for an undocumented immigrant. Immigrants in the United States face many challenges when trying to adapt or assimilate into the American culture. But my question is, what kind of mental health issues or other psychological problems do immigrants face when they are trying to adjust to the American culture, and how can our society alleviate some of that anxiety?

An interesting chapter from Current Issues and Enduring Questions was chapter twenty four, Immigration: What is to be done? Throughout this chapter multiple authors argue their opinion of immigration in the United States. There is much to learn about this topic because it is extremely controversial in today’s society. It is necessary for one to know both sides of agreeing or disagreeing with immigration to fully understand the situation and base an opinion from this knowledge. The multiple authors within this chapter have different views about immigration but they all make reasonable accusations.

Writer Jeremy Adam Smith, starts his argument by telling a story about a little boy named Rodrigo Guzman. Rodrigo’s teacher noticed that he has been absent for a few days and found out later, that him and his family have been deported back to Mexico. Rodrigo’s teacher had told the fourth-grade class what happened to Rodrigo and his family. The kids in his class were shocked to hear that their friend had been deported and wanted to do something about it. In Jeremy Adam Smith “Our Fear of Immigrants”, many Americans fear immigrants based on what they learn from their in-groups. He believes that some people fear immigrants, find them a threat and how people try to tame xenophobe.

I have read a lot of books on the subject of culture and customs of the country. When I read the book “The Immigrant Advantage” of Claudia Kolker, I understand more about the immigrants’ culture and their lifestyle. Through the book, I found interesting things about all the ideas of immigrants like me. I read each chapter of the book, and in the book I realized there are three very good ideas of marriage, several generations living in the same household, and good neighbors.

In consummation America, the land of forgiveness, provided Amir with the basis to reach atonement due to his newfound maturity. Once Amir and Baba arrive in the United States of America, the emotional growth of Amir was unambiguous. From the time in which he mended relationships with the Nguyens after Baba attempted to steal oranges, to the time he accepted Rahim Khan’s request for him to come to Pakistan, Amir’s growth was conspicuous to readers once he began living in the United States of America. U.S. News’ article “Land of the Free … and the Immigrant,” authored by Mortimer B. Zuckerman states “It is a grand tradition in America to welcome foreigners to our shores, especially people with the ambition and the talent to contribute to our future. This has always been a part of the greatness of America, which we celebrated this past Independence Day.” Along these lines, one can deduce the ideology that America accepts immigrants with open arms, eager to incorporate them into the melting pot of America. Further, these arms do not discriminate, as past wrongdoings are absolved. Amir’s life in San Francisco is splendid and he quickly assimilates into the local community and the American way of life. Thus, after enduring the laborious, life threatening, Amir’s maturity had come to fruition, now that he has a platform to display his new character amidst adulthood. Moreover, America served as a blank slate for Amir. On the grounds of Afghanistan, Amir was smothered by guilt.

Immigration, a very popular topic, but most people only think about one side. The U.S citizen side is common knowledge, but what about the immigrant’s side? In the novel, The Book of Unknown Americans, by Cristina Henríquez, and in the article "Sick and Afraid, Some Immigrants Forgo Medical Care”, by Jan Hoffman, the major theme is immigrants and their fear. As shown in the novel and the article, immigrants have feelings and families, hopes and dreams. Immigration is a very controversial issue in the United States, but it should not be, since immigrants are people too, according to both of theses sources. Medical issues, the fear of harm, and unfair treatment, are the major things that both of these sources have in common and agree on. Immigrants are struggling in America, in more ways than one, and many are wondering if coming to America was the right choice.

Research on social capital and immigration contends that immigration is inversely related to crime since immigrants often move in enclaves or groups to new areas and they create social and cultural enclaves that help individuals cope with changes at the economic and political level. Zhou and Bankston studied the integration of Vietnamese immigrants in New Orleans and found out that most Vietnamese young adults lived in very sheltered neighborhoods and family networks and they were shielded from crime (4). Thus, ethnic social relations end up playing a very critical role in the integration of foreigners without the need for them to engage in crime as a way of coping with social challenges. In ethnic enclaves it is difficult to observe anomie

In Claudia Kolker’s book The Immigrant Advantage, she talks about the cultural tradition of arranged marriages brought by South Asian immigrants to the United States. Kolker agrues that arranged marriages are much more effective in finding a spouse than traditional marriages. Kolker believes that this tradition of assistive marriage should be adopted by Americans. Research and studies have shown that “women in arranged marriages rated the highest marital status” (Kolker, 71) compared to couples who have arranged marriages. Arranged marriage is great for individuals who are ready to settle down and start their own life without wasting any time finding a partner. Arranged marriage saves a great amount of time on dating people who are not compatible with your personality or beliefs. As Kolker states, assistive marriage does not just save time in finding a lifelong partner but, it also leads to exceptional happiness between the couple than a traditional marriage reported by couples during studies. Traditions brought by immigrants such as, assistive marriage should be considered by American traditions.