Assimilation vs. Diversity

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Assimilation vs. Diversity

The United States of America is a strong country with its own general culture. At the same time, it is a country in which many unique and different cultures are represented. Having a general culture with many unique cultures mixed in has helped make America the country that it is. Immigrants should assimilate to American culture, but should be allowed to keep certain aspects of their original culture.

During my lifetime, I have had experiences with three friends from foreign countries. All of them are proficient when speaking English. Two of them had no problems with assimilating, however one of them, my old friend Anna, did not even try to assimilate to the American culture. I met Anna when I started seventh grade. She had moved to the United States with her parents from Russia a year earlier. Eventually, we became friends, but as our friendship progressed throughout eighth grade, she often complained about American culture. I would mention something that many but not all Americans enjoy doing, such as watching television. She would call it a stupid American tradition. Because of this, I almost felt that she was anti-American. Anna always liked people from different countries. When our friend Emily moved to the United States from Taiwan, Anna was excited to meet another person from a different country. After eighth grade, we went to different high schools. We did not keep in touch. A year later, we both took summer school and talked to each other almost every day for about a month. It turned out that during eighth grade, Anna's parents were expecting a baby. Anna was an only child. I feel that a part of her may have been upset, not because of another lifestyle change, but because the baby wo...

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...and educated. They can also practice ethnic traditions within their families. Through meeting Paula, I have learned some unique information about Brazil that I never thought I would know. When I talk with her, I rarely think about the fact that she's from Brazil. She is just like any other American, except she talks with a Brazilian accent. On the other hand, when I talked to Anna, she always made it quite clear that she was Russian and not American. I feel that people like her should not come to the United States if they do not wish to at least partially assimilate to American culture.

Works Cited

Bray, Thomas. "Memorial Day and Multiculturalism." Detroit News 24 May 1998.

Hairston, Maxine. "Diversity, Ideology, and Teaching Writing." College Composition and Communication 43.2 (May 1992): 179-195.

Tan, Amy. "Mother Tongue." Three Penny Review. 1990.

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