2016 presidential candidate Jeb Bush argued on Tuesday the U.S. "should not have a multicultural society." As would be expected, this received some backlash. He then made himself clear; he was using it in the literal sense, multiculturalism being the model of society in which different cultures tend to live in their own "isolated pockets" instead of assimilating into society. He argues that America is great because it has "values that people share." He says creating these pockets "limits peoples' aspirations." He also says that illegal immigrants can only become legal if they take the initiative to assimilate into society.
I agree that people should make efforts to assimilate and interact with people from different cultural backgrounds. All races and cultures have little pockets that only include themselves, so they tend to judge people who are different than them. The reason it caused backlash is because of a miscommunication on what exactly Bush meant about "multiculturalism." The assimilation of different cultures and the acceptance of different kinds of people is what the United States has been known for, and it has opened up considerably throughout its history to accept every culture. Hopefully whoever is elected in 2016 realizes that.
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I agree with what he said. I personally believe that people are taking his statement the wrong way. After all, he is promoting productive interactions with all types of people.
ReplyDeleteI must disagree a bit, multiculturalism is the basis of this society and diversity is the backbone of any community
ReplyDeleteMulticulturalism is important. People should be allowed to have their own traditions and culture aside from America's. However, we should not let our cultures adn backgrounds alienate ourselves from each other.
ReplyDeleteI get where he is coming from with wanting people to adapt to the ways of Americans, but I think if we make people completely transform, we will lose the diversity factor we are known for as a country.
ReplyDeleteSure, America should be a united society, but exactly how far does he want people of different cultures to assimilate? Does he want them to completely erase their cultural background? Does he want them to disregard their history, ethnicity, traditions, etc.? America doesn't have an official language or religion. Multiculturalism is an important aspect of any nation and people should be free to carry on with the customs and traditions they are comfortable with. And what does he mean by "isolated pockets"? Like neighborhoods people live in? I personally don't think this is a problem.
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