The writing by Walzer truly got me thinking… What makes us American? Is it the football we watch, the guns we (don’t) own, the apple pie most of us enjoy? Walzer quotes Philip Gleason who claims, “A person did not have to be of any particular national, linguistic, religious, or ethnic background. All he had to do was to commit himself to the political ideology centered on the abstract ideals of liberty, equality, and republicanism”. Now those ideals are abstract indeed, so abstract that perhaps America was doomed to be the home of intense ideological strife…. The Whitehouse today is certainly evidence of this. Gerstle’s essay expands on the ideas of Walzer, saying that the push for nationalism in America is not as righteous as it seems, and many immigrants are quite reluctant to abandon their “old-country’s” culture. Not only that, but race, ethnicity, and gender play an immense role in how integrated and successful individuals can become in American society- a society that is not simply a “melting pot”. With unshakeable ethnicities, Americans are citizens of a country unlike any other; how can we have any sort of unity when we don’t even know what it is that unites us? How can a country divided continue to exist? Walzer didn’t address this facet of pluralism in his essay, so what do my fellow students think?
On the other hand, Americans all relish the idea that their religions and ethnicities can be celebrated and have the ability to coexist. Perhaps the quality that all Americans share is the fierce dedication to preserve the right to hold whatever beliefs and practices they wish. Each group will fight to protect their interests and safeguard their beliefs; the only issue may be the interests of one group conflict with another. Will there be any cohesive multi-ethnic and multi-religious movement for toleration nation wide? I think not, especially with the amount of bigotry that exists today. Steinberg offers yet another insight: although assimilation isn’t complete, it is happening all across the nation. How many of us are much more “American” than our grandparents? Perhaps that is the idea behind assimilations. Fresh immigrants will definitely partake in the pluralism that is common amongst Americans, but their descendants are very likely to join the ranks of the Americanized, albeit with colorful backgrounds. I certainly feel very American, despite being a dedicated part of a much smaller ethnic group of Jewish Americans. Do any other students in the class feel the same way?
3 Responses to Sparker #2- February 14th, 2012