Often times, people refer to regions with high immigration and diversity levels as a “melting pot”. The salad bowl approach refers to how people of different ethnicities within these regions adapt to their new country. Within the United States of America in particular, these two terms are commonly discussed. It seems that many people find themselves questioning if one can keep their cultural values while becoming an American citizen. What is the expectation for incoming immigrants, should they be expected to abandon their values in order to become the ideal traditional American citizen?
When asking the aforementioned questions the differences between tolerance and understanding could also come into question. Tolerance is when people have…show more content… At the same time, conflicts are often what threaten to undermine our efforts for an enduring and sustainable society” (Sernau 112). This quote therefore plays into how tolerance can cause conflict within a society where people fail to understand the healthy nature of cultural differences. It could be said that people view immigrants as less than “native” citizens. When people are expected to leave their cultural customs at the border, repression will occur as a result.
Currently, Immigration is a hot global topic. As the war within Syria continues to grow, Syrian refugees are seeking safer locations within other countries. The states have agreed to take on at least 10,000 refugees, possibly more in the near future. This issue has been at the center of debates as some people, mostly conservatives, already feel that the States have taken on too many immigrants from the Mexican borders. Sernau shows the growing immigration rates, “The United States hovers right at replacement level with a fertility rate around two. It grows only due to immigration and the composition of its population changes accordingly. Groups with higher immigration rates—Hispanics as well as some Asians—grow rapidly mostly due to immigration” (Sernau 267). In sum, the only reason that the population rate for some minorities is in its current state is due to increasing immigration rates within the United States. The increasing immigration rates has caused conflict within the United States are people feel there needs to be stricter border patrol in order to protect American customs and land. However, keeping people out of the country simply won’t work and it should not be expected of people to abandon their cultural customs in order to become an American