The United States has Changed from a Melting Pot to a Vast Culture with Varying Racial Backgrounds

Much has changed from the beginning of America to the 21st century. Most people in early American times were white, spoke English, Christian, and had straight marriages. Now, America consists of different ethnicities, sexualities, and religions. Some people believe that the U.S. is a “melting pot”, while others believe that individuality and diversity are becoming more prevalent in society. In recent years, diversity is much more appreciated than it was in the past.

This essay explores the many types of diversity that characterized the 20th century in the United States, including demographic shifts and cultural expressions, and how they have shaped the country we know today. Throughout the 20th century, the United States underwent significant demographic changes that had a profound impact on American society. Waves of immigrants from around the world contributed to the rich mosaic of American society, with people from different countries and cultures bringing their unique perspectives, traditions, and values to the melting pot that is the United States. At the beginning of the century, millions of immigrants from Europe came to the United States, seeking economic opportunities and fleeing religious persecution and political unrest.

As the United State is becoming more of a diverse country, cultural adaptation is becoming the norm, as well as, bicultural identity. “Culture change has traditionally referred to the modifications, revisions, and new manners of expression that result from the process of interaction between cultures.” Robbins,Chatterjee and Canda, (2012) (pg.135). When any culture, individual has embedded within a community that assimilates the heritage receiving the culture biculturalism likely to emerge.

America, the quintessential melting pot, allows us to experience an extraordinary amount of variety in people when it comes to ethnicity, culture, language, personality, work ethic, and background.

For those that identify as Latino, the racial category of “Latino” is not an option on the U.S. census. Latinos are given a separate question that assumes all Latinos share a collective identity under the ethnic category of “hispanic origin”. Latin Americans are constructing a fluid definition of race and ethnicity against the United State’s rigid definitions of race. Much of the Latin American community would prefer to

No idea in America has been as lasting as race. Unlike the 19th century notion that anyone could move out west and become rich by mining gold, the notion of race persists and continues to deceive people into believing in its authenticity (Morgan 1982). Those in power in the United States, seem determined to stay in power. They continue to marginalize minorities and keep dark-skinned persons in a position

America was widely known as a “melting pot” of sorts for many generations. The country earned its title by accepting immigrants of various cultures and molding, or melting, them into the American lifestyle. However, the “melting pot” idea of America is starting to dissipate. According to a Newsweek Poll on the public, “only 20 percent still think America is a melting pot” (Morganthau and Wolfberg, par.4). As more Americans push away immigrants and create stereotypes against said immigrants, America continues to lose its title as a “melting pot.” There is ethnic friction in America and people have begun to have a hard time assimilating (Morganthau and Wolfberg, par.18). .America is beginning to place a negative outlook on its

The United States of America was founded on July 4, 1776. Seeking a life free of the British Government, a host of immigrants founded a new nation. Because the United States was created by the migration of people from various parts of the world, it is sometimes described as a “melting pot.” Along with their personal possessions, these immigrants brought their respective cultures and traditions as they meshed together into a new society. Despite being categorized together as citizens of the same country, the independent traditions and lifestyles of humankind have created challenges throughout history. It is important for Americans to share a sense of pride, patriotism and loyalty. Equally important, however, is the need for respect regarding differences and individualism. Ethnocentrism is a barrier between understanding culture and diversity.

America is referred to as a melting pot of cultures since 1782 by French observer Crevecoeur. The idea here is that people from many cultures all come together to create a new group of individuals who possess the best qualities and attributes of the different cultures contributing to the pot. Today, America’s races are becoming more like a salad bowl as individual groups are hanging onto their cultures.

Since its establishment, the United States has been known as a melting pot of cultures. The ability to act the way we want, believe in what we want, and be who we want, has become the most important facet of American life.

“When immigration was controlled, measured, and coupled with a confident approach to assimilation, America not only survived but thrived. Various ethnic groups enriched America with diverse art, food, music, and literature while accepting a common culture of American values and institutions” (Hanson). America has always been known for being a melting pot, considering it is a country filled with many diversities. Little do we know that with diversity arises many problematic situations. Although there are many people who strive to find common ground, it seems that with the way ignorant people think, we will never really find it.

Lyndon B. Johnson once said “The land flourished because it was fed from so many sources--because it was nourished by so many cultures and traditions and peoples.” President Johnson was referring to the rich cultural history that America is privileged to have as a result of immigration. America is a country of immigrants. A stroll in any major city will quickly reveal the multifaceted culture that is America. While historically the United States has been labeled a “melting pot” where all cultures have come together to create one, a more popular, and in my opinion, more fitting term is “salad bowl.” This idea demonstrates that immigrants bring different cultures; each of these cultures is kept intact and serves as an essential part to make up the whole. The trend in America is toward multiculturalism, not assimilation. The metaphor "melting pot" is conceding to new metaphors such as "salad bowl", reflecting the mixture of multiple immigrants that are American, but maintain their native culture. As more immigrants are finding their way to the United States the fabric of America becomes more diverse and colorful every day.

Once America became a thriving and trusting nation great numbers of people from many areas around the globe began to migrate and settle here. From there on out, societies in American that used to be mono cultural and mono linguistic evolved into societies mixed with multi-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-religious. This was game changer for the makeup of America but what contributes to the issue at hand is that people of certain groups stuck

Our ancestors dreamed of a better future and they migrated to fulfill those dreams. Back then it was a common practice because so much land was uncolonized or it was not claimed by a certain kingdom. Today, people have those same dreams, but their only way to fulfill those dreams is known as The United States of America. The United States is rapidly becoming a multiracial society, because of dramatic cultural changes such as jobs, immigration, and discrimination are affected.

When a group of people gather, or concentrated around a given place they will form a society. A society is an organization made of different types and group of peoples. We can find different levels of a society based on the number and type of people it incorporated in it. When numerous distinct groups present and coexist in a society, it is called pluralism (Conley, 2015). Society formed from a group of people who might or might not have the same culture, beliefs, norms, and values depending on the size of the society. We can classify it from larger society to smaller society based on the number of people it has in it. As the cycle of life continues, the number and type of people incorporated in each society changes. Immigration is a factor for the creation of Pluralistic society. When people from different ethnic or racial group migrate, and end up in the same place, they create a culturally pluralistic society, among them the American Society is one of them.