Intergenerational Cultural Issues : The Conflict Between Generations

I. Immigration has always been a matter of controversy in the United States. Most of us have a foreign background or heritage. However, nowadays we can see major leaders in the world of politics and business that have different cultural backgrounds, and, if you are Latin American, Asian, African American, the Middle East or any other race, you might feel more identified with some of these leaders.

Immigration issues have been a problem throughout history. This Society holds different perceptions on the topic. Some people favor the flow of immigrants while others oppose it. Immigration is a social problem that must constantly be reviewed due to the complexity of the problems. In this situation, different factors such as the quality of life for immigrants, how they impact the economy, how the implementation of policies would benefit them, have to be taken into consideration. Immigration policies affect all aspects of today’s society. The key figures in the immigration issue are immigrants, documented/undocumented, political figures.

But one prevalent issue that has continued to be the source of much controversy is immigration. Founded on immigration this issue is not new to this country. Although it’s an issue that has been around for many years the mixed sentiments directed at it have only continued to become more prevalent. This may be due to the various perspectives from which it is viewed. The way in which an issue is looked at is influenced by various factors which become evident when the issue of immigration is discussed.

Immigrant groups take refuge in America in hope of starting a better life for themselves and their ongoing generations. They take on the belief that upon coming to America, they will be presented by the riches and freedom granted by the “American Dream”. However, these opportunities are not easily achieved. Many immigrant families are challenged with the initial obstacles of having to adapt to the new languages and the customs of their environment. For example, without the basic knowledge of the standard English language, immigrants will not be able to apply for a majority of the jobs available. This puts immigrant parents at disadvantages because then they will not be able to provide the sufficient funds needed for allowing their children

Immigration has a great impact on first generation immigrants. Studies show that acculturation and assimilation have wide-ranging effects on the groups involved, but mostly on the immigrants' lives. There are positive and negative attributes. Attributes that are due to the issues associated with integrating cultures, and broadly related to the greater issue of immigration. The issues and discrimination towards first generation immigrants cause them to have limitations throughout their lifetime, in the country that they have moved to. Furthermore, the Hispanic and Latino community have lived through this problem for so long. They are always the group to be affected by it because they lose a sense

The changing environments throughout the ages have caused the movement of thousands of families out of their homelands. Whether forced to make such decisions or doing so by their own desires, all immigrants have had to survive the physical and psychological challenges encountered along the way. To speak about the experiences of all these different people using the same ideas and examples would be quite inaccurate. They all, however, had to live through similar situations and deal with similar problems. Many of them succeeded and found the better future they were looking for. Many others found only hardship and experienced the destruction of their hopes and dreams. All of them were transformed.

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

In the past, most immigrants came as workers with similar skill levels and from similar societies. Now, most immigrants come as relatives and from underdeveloped countries. As a result, most immigrants are poor, unskilled, and unable to mix into our society.

The United States is often called a melting pot because of the vast array of cultures that all live in the country. People have come from every corner of the world to settle in the United States. In recent years, the influx of immigration has become a contentious issue. Some people believe that the US is overpopulated and that further immigration poses a danger to the country while others contend that the US was built on immigration and that it is un-American to prohibit people from living here if they so wish. The articles "5 Myths About Immigration" and "The Challenge of Diversity" detail the different issues which are related to the immigration issue, both discuss the amount of immigration that occurs, the fear of immigrants taking jobs from American citizens, and the idea that immigrants are reluctant to assimilate into the American culture.

Immigration in today's world is something that has created a lot of discussion. Immigration has the potential to cause a lot of tension in schools because some students have grown up

Cultural practices cause some problems for families because their way of living or morals may not be accepted. Some immigrants relocate to North America for employment; however immigrants want to share their beliefs with their families. Families want to continue to practice their religion, eat the same food, and discipline their children according to their culture.

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

Most people do not think their family has a culture. They associate culture with countries and ethnic groups. But the family for most people is just a group of family people who do what they always do. Directly and subtly, children are shaped by the family culture in which they are born. At the stage of growth, their assumptions about what is right or wrong, good and bad, reflect the beliefs, values, and traditions of the family culture. Most take their family manners for granted and bring into adulthood numerous attitudes and behaviors acquired in childhood. Even those who later reject all or part of the family culture often find that they are not totally free of their early influences. 1

SUMMARY OF THE ARTICLE “UNDERSTANDING AND MANAGING GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES IN THE WORK PLACE” ( Cited from Kapoor and Solomon 2011)

Supervising staff and volunteers from ages fourteen to ninety can be a challenging task. These age groups make up the four different generations: Traditionalist, Baby Boomers, Generation X’ers, and Generation Y’ers. Traditionalist, (born 1925-1946) may need a little prodding to communicate their needs and they prefer written communication plans. Baby Boomers, (born 1946-1964) are aware of technology but still prefer to communicate by telephone and they call themselves the age of the memo. Generation X’ers, (born 1965-1982) commonly prefer short concise communication. Generation Y’ers, (born 1983-2000) prefer short, quick e-mails, texting and mobile phone applications to communicate. The hospital