Can we talk about assimilation?

Well, apparently resistance is futile. That’s what I know about it.

Well, the first European white Americans certainly weren’t very big on the concept of assimilation back when they were in the minority. They demanded a whole lot of accommodation, as I recall.

The “melting pot ” notion underlies the intense pressure on immigrants to lose their language, customs, traditions and accents. This amounts to cultural genocide. The Jews of Europe had managed to assimilate until the Nazis sought to exterminate them regardless.

Assimilation benefits the intolerant who cannot abide people who are different from themselves.

In Canada, a different model, “cultural mosaic” does much more to protect and celebrate people’s cultural, linguistic and religious differences. Maybe that is why we are less concerned about wanting to have guns in everyone’s hands.

@Dr_Lawrence What does legal firearm ownership have to do with assimilation? Who have you been listening to?

One planet.
One people.
Many ways.
All of us together.

@Blackberry What a great question. I am firmly convinced that just like no one person has ALL the answers, neither does any one culture. I think what we Americans should do is, to the degree this is practicable, look at all the cultures among us and adopt the best from each one. I think that a melting-pot culture is an emergent culture, greater than the sum of its parts. Insular cultures are far less capable of remaining open to the unbidden. They are less likely to innovate.

But this only works for a melting-pot culture when most of its members embrace the idea of examining the strengths and insights of the other cultures around them. To the narrow-minded racist the benefits of the emergent society are as closed as is their mind.

Besides, whites are now the minority – time we assimilate into the new society.

@starsofeight Not quite yet. Non-Hispanic whites number 199.3 million, or 65% of the US Population. Hispanic whites are another 30.4 million. The Census Bureau projects that we (Non-Hispanic whites) will drop to 46.3% of the US population by 2050. So we should actually start getting used to a blended culture instead of organizing culture warrior political movements bent on keeping ourselves the ruling class. If we try to remain the ruling class, we will get overruled by the numbers.

@ETpro What a great answer. I agree.

@Blackberry Thank you.

@ETpro I’m with you on that. I can barely control my flatulence. I’m far from ruling, and far from class.

But let me ask – have your numbers factored in the uncounted portion of our society?

@starsofeight The numbers quoted were from the US Census Bureau and did not specify. In the actual census, where they count only those who are willing to answer, including illegals who are not reported by the Census Bureau. But generally the Census Bureau demographics are from very careful studies of representative areas and projections to take into account the under-reporting by those in the country illegally and afraid to answer.

Despite what the far-right wants to promote in their demonization propaganda, the Federal Government uses scientific methods instead of spin to establish how many people are actually here, because they have to provide for the true numbers, not ones that make great political fodder for either left or right wing politics.