I can't deny it: USA is a great nation!
In this first class I have learnt some interesting facts about the US. For example, I believed that Puerto Rico, one of the US’s territories, had its own President, but I was wrong. I also used to think that in the US there were more Black people than Latinos, but it is quite the opposite!
However, the main topic of the class was to decide whether American culture is a melting pot or a salad bowl. For doing this, we read an interesting article which stated the difference between these two approaches. Eventually, and after discussing points of view, we agreed that the US is a mixture of both melting pot and salad bowl. Why? Because we can see different ethnic groups living and working together, but they keep their own customs and traditions. On the other hand, we can also see people from all over the world not only live and work together, but also start new families. As a result, there are more and more people adopting a mix of customs and traditions. And this is the reason of diversity within America.
Unfortunately, diversity brings problems. American society still has to deal with racism and inequality due to discrepancies between ethnic groups.
I also though there were more blacks than latinos in the US, it was a big surprise learning that wasn't true.
ResponderEliminarAnd you're right, in Amrica there are still a lot of racism. If you think about it, the US has been home to almost every type of racism and discrimination. It's a little hard to believe!
Pamela, It is said that California and New York represent 2 societies that are of mixed-but-segregated category. To what extent do you think it is true?
ResponderEliminarHi teacher, i'm sorry I answer late.
EliminarAfter searching information and reading some articles, I'd say segregation in New York and California is true. And this is ironic because both cities are two of the most diverse cities in US. However, there are some facts we should take into consideration. Fist of all, in the case of African-American population, the segregation is caused by racism mainly. Since slavery was abolished, “Blacks” were victim of rejection and they had to build and live in their own neighborhood separated from white people. Unfortunately, this situation hasn’t changed so much and we can still see it in these days. Secondly, in the case of Latino and Asian immigrants, they prefer settle in neighborhood populated by other from their nations of origin; and somehow this is convenient for them: they don’t have communication problems and don’t have to adapt to a new culture.
I found out that measures against segregation have been taken, such as fair housing laws, but these seem not to be enough to integrate America's communities.