The walled garden on the mall in Godfather and the separation between Italians and "Mericans" in the video: two faces of the same coin?
(By the way, the video states that for the Italians, everybody else was just a "Merican," and it goes on to list several ethnic groups. Sorry, but this is some heavy-duty whitewashing: Black people were NOT "Mericans". There was another name for them.)
COMMENT: Does preserving your original culture IN AMERICA justify refusing to integrate and accept "the others?' How do you balance tradition, history, culture, language preservation and the ideology of the "melting pot" (which was the dominant social theory/ideology until 10-15 years ago.)
REPLY to a comment that made you think that maybe there is more to this issue that you ever considered.
No, for me I do not believe that preserving ones original culture in America justifies refusing to integrate and accept the others.I think sometimes people cannot grasp the concept of respecting other's cultures without adopting them. While the two are not mutually exclusive, I think that most people are simply afraid that if they integrate or accept other cultures, that they will completely lose their own.
ReplyDeleteI don't find it very difficult to balance tradition, history, culture, language, and the ideology of the "melting pot." The reason for this is that I find it easier to preserve and appreciate my own culture when I appreciate others and find things in common with other peoples culture and my own.I think what makes it difficult to preserve culture and traditions is when one insists on rejecting everyone else's which I believe, then causes this pressure to keep culture, language and tradition.
Hi Amanda,
DeleteYou have some great points as usual. I especially like your explanation on rejecting other cultures may cause pressure to certain other cultures. This made me think that if people still were like they were 15 years ago then we would've never choose Barrack Obama as President. But since people decided to move forward and look past racial views and how he was not white he was still elected as President which is a very clear indicator that people wanted to move forward.
I agree that people think accepting and respecting another culture means they will lose their own culture. I think this could also be because the person or people are not very confident about their own culture and think others may be better and more appealing, yet they are afraid of change or are so embedded in their ways that they don't think they can change. In such a situation they think the only way to keep their own culture alive is by rejecting and shunning the other culture for themselves and their family too.
DeleteI agree with the fact that people are usually afraid to accept other cultures that isn't their own, with that i also agree with your idea of how finding a balance has helped you appreciate your own culture more, and allowed you to find similarities with others.
DeleteNo - preserving our culture in America does not justify refusing to integrate because even if we don't follow everyone's culture it doesn't mean we don't accept them; it just means we don't practice it.
ReplyDeleteI believe in United States being a free country we're able to balance tradition, history, culture, language and ideology by being able to make our own decisions and not being frowned upon by others. Almost everyone in America has their own ways of life and it wouldn't be fair to hate on someone just because they live life a differently than you.
I agree that it is not fair to look down on other people just because they practice a different culture or have different beliefs. The United States is built on the freedom of religion and just because someone practices something differently does not mean that they should be looked down on. We should encourage people to accept who they truly are and accept not only their own culture but others' as well.
DeleteI believe that preserving culture in America is not a justification for refusing others. One's preservation of culture can only be done on their own dedication. Refusing other cultures unjustly restricts others from their right to preserve culture. Likewise, cultures contain some similarities, and are able to build on and expand some beliefs.
ReplyDeleteVarious aspects of culture, including language and history, are easier to preserve than one might think. The "melting pot" theory introduces cultural members to people of the same culture and other cultures simultaneously. The lengths that one goes to show cultural aspects to new and existing members helps to keep it intact. In doing so, they're also introduced to new behaviors that they may find more suitable than their own, thus adapting to them.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHi Henry,
DeleteI really like your point about how refusing other cultures unjustly restricts others from their right to preserve culture. I didn't think about that.I think that part of the reason that people are not accepting other cultures has to do with the viewpoint that "we are in America so we must behave as Americans." I believe that these are also the same people who have a problem with preserving their own culture. The issue with this viewpoint is that as the question states,America is quite the melting pot.The wide variety of cultures is what makes America,America.If all of that didn't exist I personally do not think that America would be America.
No, preserving your original culture in America doesn't justify refusing to integrate and accept the "others". This is obvious because just like we would want Americans and people of other cultures to respect and accept our culture, they would want the same from us too. We do not have to follow or copy them, but we must respect and accept them. There may even be aspects of someone else's culture that we admire and I don't think adopting those would mean abandoning our own culture. If we reject the ways of others we are not giving them the chance to accept us, and in that case we ourselves are to blame for being considered outcasts.
ReplyDeleteI think balancing tradition, history, culture, language preservation and the ideology of the "melting pot" may be difficult, but it is not impossible. In America there are people of many different races, with very different cultures and traditions. It is only natural that some contradict the other and that some people do not agree with the views of people of another culture. What we must understand is that we do not have to agree with the ways of everyone else, as long as they are fine with it, not breaking any laws or imposing their ways on us, we can just agree to disagree. f it does not affect your way of life, why bother someone about it? Diversity is beauty, let it flourish.
Also, if someone likes something about your culture and adopts it, I don't think we should start screaming "cultural appropriation", which has become a very overused statement nowadays. When so many different cultures live side by side it is normal for some people to pick up some things from the other culture, and we should not be offended by this, we should take it as a compliment. For example, if a white girl has many Indian friends who are all wearing 'saris' to a certain party so she wears one too, this is nothing to be offended by. By calling such trivial things "cultural appropriation", we are making the boundaries between people bigger and living in harmony harder.
I disagree with your point on cultural appropriation.
DeleteIn order for people to live in harmony they need to be willing to accept the things that bring us together as well as the things that make us different. Cultures are different.
If everyone just started taking whatever they wanted from different cultures it would diminish things that hold significance. I agree that everyone should allow other's to live their life in whatever way as long as they aren't hurting someone else, but when someone takes something from someone else's culture they are hurting someone. People also tend to take from cultures to mock them, or to even use as a way of prejudice only forwarding tension.
I believe that preserving your own original culture in America does not justify refusing to integrate and accept others. I think that people just don't understand other cultures and are so used their own that they refuse to listen or learn about others. They only believe in their own and in a way refuse everything else, which is not a justification for doing so.
ReplyDeleteI think that balancing tradition, history, culture, and language with the idea of the melting pot is not as difficult as people make it seem to be. Honestly in my opinion growing up around people with many different cultures around me has had me appreciate my own culture more, but also be able to connect with others as i found some similarities between my cultural and theirs, which in a way lead us to be closer friends.
Preserving you culture in America does not justify refusing to integrate and accept others. The foundation of this country is built on, religious and cultural freedom which allows you to be the person you are but a pivotal piece of that idea is to accept these freedoms for everyone else as well. There is a fine line between adopting the culture and accepting it and the problem begins when people are unable to accept certain culture derived things in their communities or neighborhood. The ideology of the "melting pot" that America has formulated itself into should be seen a positive light instead of an issue. It should be an example to the rest of the world that we are able to live peacefully amongst one another when there are so many major differences in peoples history, traditions, language, and religions. The best thing is instead of forcing others to agree with our own ideology we begin to explore other regions of a culture and begin to mesh pieces of them into our everyday lives that influence our habits, routines and thought processes and I think it is astounding that we are able to do that so gracefully at times.
ReplyDeleteNo, I do not believe that preserving your original culture IN AMERICA justifies a person as refusing to integrate and accept “the others”. I think that preserving your original culture helps an individual or a group of individuals integrate and accept “others” better. Culture is an aspect that has been passed on for generations, preserving that culture connects us back to our ancestors, even before they came to this new land. The different cultures and practices are what make living in America so unique, there is not one set culture throughout, but rather it is all combined to form a new culture; a “melting pot” as some would call it. Being of different cultures allows the people living in America to integrate and accept others living next to them because we are constantly eager to learn more about another culture, without disregarding them as ‘different’.
ReplyDeleteI balance my tradition, history, and culture by not living in or working in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood. On a daily basis I am able to interact with other cultures and learn what they have to offer, or why they do certain customs. As I am able to learn from other cultures they are able to learn from mine as well. When it comes to the customs and traditions of my culture, I continue to do so on a daily basis without causing a problem for others. As I continue these traditions, I learn to appreciate other cultures for what they are and not judge them badly. I preserve my traditional language of Hebrew by speaking the language at home, to some of my friends, and family members who are overseas. I am able to preserve the language even if I do not use it in a school or work setting. I feel that America was formed as a combination of all the cultures that emigrated here. The culture of America is a “melted pot” of all the different cultures that have come together and shared part of their traditions and customs to form one common culture. This melted pot of all the cultures gives us the opportunity to integrate and accept others, even if they are of a different culture.
Your comments made me think clearly about this topic. I agree with what you said and you were able to expand my thoughts before I wrote. I, too, agree that American is a melting pot. It is unfair for one to not accept others because of culture. America was built off religious freedom.
DeleteI do not believe that preserving your original culture in America justifies a person as refusing to integrate and accept “the others”. People do not understand other cultures. This country is built on religious freedom, and there is no right or wrong culture, religion, and traditions.
ReplyDeleteI am Italian -American and identify as both cultures. I try not to favor one over the other, but it is hard when I live with my American only parent. I try to appreciate other cultures and preserve my Italian traditions.
America was formed as a melting pot and we can help each other learn and melt together by sharing our cultures and traditions.
Having two different cultural backgrounds is very interesting and having to apply both to your life. My parents are of the same culture, however, I like to take in the culture I have grown into by living in America with my Palestinian culture.
DeleteTo me, America is a diversified country with intertwining races and people having relationships, friendships, and lives with people of all races. One’s nationality and ethnicity shouldn’t be a divide within a society. To me the formation of American culture is by the collection of other cultures. There is no one culture connected to America. America’s history in regards to different races and nationalities is horrible, there has always been a division. Lately, lots has changed, diversity has been accepted. Although there are still many issues in which we face in society today. For example, police brutality that sparked the Black Lives Matter movement, or the hate crimes towards Muslim Americans. People still have a tough time accepting other nationalities and religions, but it is nothing compared to the rejection people faced a couple decades ago.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that preserving your culture should equal isolating yourself from others.
ReplyDeleteCulture is very important and should be preserved to some extent. The narrator takes on a very specific stance on culture referring to times before as "the good old days" however the narrator wouldn't refer to the lynching of Italian Americans not to much earlier as "the good old days". I think that nostalgia makes people see the past in a more idealized light which heavily contorts the way things actually were.
Being someone raised in New York City my entire life I know the importance of having so many different cultures in one place. Seeing other people's culture leads to having a more informed outlook at the world, and feeling empathy towards people who seem to be nothing like you. However, I also understand cultural appropriation, and know that other people's culture is not my culture, and it will never be my place to take something from someone else's culture. I think this is important because people who aren't from a culture will not understand appropriate uses for cultural items.
Although the idea of mixing together different things is a good one- culture is also a way for marginalized people to know they are not alone. When someone takes from someone else's culture they are basically inserting themselves into a safe space. For the most simple of analogies it would be like if someone just started acting like your bedroom was theirs. Using all of your items in ways that they are not meant to be, and not understanding why you keep certain important items, or why you set your room up the way you did. It's a violation of your property.
I think it's completely possible to have culture and be a part of a wider community of people.
I believe that preserving your own originality in America does not justify refusing to integrate and accept others. America is a diverse country with many different culture. One must adapt but still remember where they came from. Its great to learn from others and being expose to other cultures. When one can still their culture it is a beautiful thing.
ReplyDeleteThere is definitely a balance in resisting assimilation and preservation of culture. People should never refuse integration and the acceptance of others. It is beautiful to hold on to one's culture to never forget it. But there is also beauty in change and in growth. America is a melting-pot and was made for multiple cultures. The environment should respect others' differences but also have a common-ground.
ReplyDelete