The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Tommy De Seno begins his epic post on the main feed with these words:
As the immigration debate heats up, we must remember that America has a culture. Of foremost importance to any immigration policy must be protection of that culture.
As a 1.5 generation immigrant (meaning, I came here when I was 10 or so), and likely one of only a few Ricochetti who actually had to go through the naturalization process, I feel compelled to point out something here.
If you believe the above-- that immigration policy must protect American culture -- then I have news for you.
America had a culture. It no longer does. And before you can talk about immigration policy protecting American culture, you had best figure out what the heck that is.
I immigrated with my parents in 1979-1980, part of the second wave of immigrants from Asia. (The first wave happened in the late 60's after the 1965 immigration reforms.) At least in the 80s, and even through parts of the 90s (when I finally became a citizen), I can say with certainty that there was an American culture. It wasn't easy to define, but you felt it and knew it.
For example, consider what was on TV in the mid-80's and was popular. I distinctly remember watching Little House on the Prairie after school and thinking that the whole frontier spirit was distinctly American. I distinctly remember watching shows like Silver Spoons, The Jeffersons, Family Ties, and The Cosby Show, and taking from each of them a sense of what it meant to be American -- a valuable clue for a foreigner. Even Cheers, Magnum PI, Miami Vice, and other programs that weren't centered around the family still had major streaks of "American culture" in them -- a sort of gruff, everyman quality where a snooty intellectual would hang out in the same Boston bar with a mailman and a wisecracking waitress. At the same time, Dallas, Dynasty, Fantasy Island, and other shows/movies made it clear that wealth was not despised here, but celebrated. Capitalism was a hero -- after all, we were in a Cold War with communists.
Socially, as a young foreigner, I was fully aware that the Puritan tradition remained in American culture. Do you remember just how shocking Madonna's "Like A Virgin" was when it hit the airwaves? We kids snuck around to listen to that titillating song, because we knew it wasn't quite accepted. The practice on the streets may have been very different from what was on TV and in our music, but I got the distinct sense that Americans at least paid lip service to traditional morality.
Overall, the culture of America -- to which an immigrant is hyper-sensitive -- was one of Christian capitalism, always undergirded with a strong sense of individualism and personal freedom.
Fast forward to today. To 2013.
If I were immigrating today, you tell me just what is the culture I'm supposed to absorb, learn, and assimilate to?
The culture of San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, where supersized Big Gulps are banned and smoking isn't allowed outdoors in city parks? Or the culture of Texas where bar owners are free to decide whether to have indoor smoking or not?
Am I supposed to believe that American culture is about family and faith as it is in parts of the South and exurban/suburban communities? Or about Sex And The City and Girls?
Is capitalism and success something to be celebrated? Or demonized? Or justified only because it allows the super rich to give to charities (as appears to be the case looking at Silicon Valley and high finance culture)?
Am I supposed to believe that Americans still consider themselves equal to each other in rights and privileges, or believe that government officials and former law enforcement are special and different?
What's American? Tommy De Seno cites an essay in which Italian immigrants talk about Americans being people who ate PB&J on mushy white bread. None of my peers and friends in urban areas would be caught dead buying mushy white bread when fresh-baked seven-grain French peasant bread is available at Whole Foods. Is it American to know the names of at least a dozen celebrity chefs? Or is it still American to order a burger medium-rare, with a side of sweet potato fries?
I can go on and on and on, but there is little doubt in my mind that there really are two Americas now. It isn't the "rich vs. poor" of John Edwards' fiction, but the City vs. the Country, or Charles Murray's Belmont vs. Fishtown, or the North vs. South, or something less definable.
Whether we're talking about leisure (college football vs. independent films), food, music, TV, movies, political beliefs, religious beliefs ... there are two Americas.
So when you want to ask immigrants to assimilate to American culture... which America's culture? Should they assimilate to the New Yorker (after all, New York still boasts the quintessential American icon of the Statue of Liberty, no?) and disdain fast food, hold politically correct opinions, and look upon smokers as lepers? Or do they assimilate to the Texan?
Tommy DeSeno writes:
Were we to allow America’s ideals to be radically changed over time by outsiders coming in, the case could then be made that America as founded no longer exists. At that point we may as well change the name to not denigrate what American once was.
I don't know what to tell ya, but it ain't the outsiders who changed America's ideals. It ain't Hispanics that pushed Obamacare through, but whitebread, trace-my-lineage-to-the-Mayflower types from Boston et. al. It ain't the Asians who are agitating for national bans on firearms; it's the natives with generations upon generations of roots in this country of ours.
And finally, this:
While I acknowledge that it can be hard to let go, I stress that anyone who won’t let go of their old country makes themselves an outsider here, not the other way around. Assimilation means the newcomer has to do the work of fitting in with us, not us with him.
As someone who had to actually do this, I concur heartily and agree 100 percent. It is the outsider that should do the work of fitting in, not the other way around. I did it, and I expect newcomers to do it too.
But you know, you/we need to be able to tell the outsider what it is that he's supposed to fit in with. You want immigrants to assimilate? Give him something to assimilate with.
Start there. Because it's not only unfair but patently illogical to demand in 2013 that the new immigrant fit in with "us", when there is no "us" to speak of. Speak of that first, before you go about trying to set immigration policy of any sort.
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Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Thanks for the lengthy response Sophist.
Yours is an interesting point but I wonder if it's not new. You really are touching on concepts of federalism.
States in different regions have always had deviations in lifestyle and therefore culture. But that just makes your point well taken.
When in Rome...
But America is much bigger than Rome.
Nov '12
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
First of all, TV shows are a pretty dismal reflection of what is or isn't real in any culture, but the US in particular. Over the decades, I've read quite a bit about how exports of our glitzy 80s shows gave foreigners really screwed up impressions of Americans, so the idea that we're all "one culture" because we have XYZ TV show or all watch the same thing is baloney.
Furthermore, there was a very interesting book that came out a few years back that I forgot the name of about Irish orphans who were having a hard time because at one time the Irish were considered black racially, not white. Now, we don't even notice who is Irish anymore. So were we more "one" then, or are we more "one" now? Which thermometers do you want to use to measure this? My own recollections of my Polish-Italian heritage consisted of my grandmother's runny mac n cheese in the 70s. The US has and has always had lots of subcultures and countercultures, and this is normal for a healthy state.
Nov '12
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
I know this is a little off topic, but I think all the screaming over at the Blaze and other blogs about the Pledge of Allegiance said at that school in foreign langauges has the same basic theme as this discussion, so let me add a few thoughts on that.
Prior to WWI, the US was actually rather bilingual. Most people aren't aware of it, but there were even bilingual schools. But with the advent of the World Wars, people in the US got really freaked by Germany, which was one of our bilingual languages, and they outlawed teaching any child under the age of 11 a foreign language in some places (remember the custom that you started foreign language in 8th or 9th grade?) The Sputnik era changed the thinking back to older ways that we needed those skills.
Part of the concern in that short span of history where even German street names were changed in the US was that students would be exposed to hostile political thought, and they wanted to ensure students learned our political values. With foreign language study, it then became important to give students material (see post below to continue)
Mar '11
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
As a 1.0 immigrant, I totally agree. The America that I entered in 1985 has already been fundamentally transformed into something else.
One would think that coming as I do from England I would feel right at home in Mr Obama's Brave New World, but I don't - it reminds me of why I left the UK in the first place.
If anything, I have grown to appreciate English culture, more - so I now find myself somewhat stranded half way across the Atlantic, not totally at home in either place. Rather a bemused, somewhat cynical, spectator.
Anyway, Ricochet helps a lot :)
Nov '12
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
(continued) that was in the foreign language that was conducive to learning American values. Hence, translating the Pledge of Allegiance into a foreign language students are studying is considered very, very appropriate because it was a learning activity that focused on American values. It's the thoughts, not the language!
Oct '10
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
I was firmly convinced during Bush that the country was largely center-right, and I'd convinced myself that this was a result of the babyboomers--my sorry generation--coming around to the wisdom of Conservatism as they aged.
I knew there was strong opposition, but I thought the trend was on our side. That the reasonable people who witnessed the implosion of Communism worldwide and learned from it were the majority.
I thought 2008 was a silly one-off, that Race-centerness+Hollywood+Youth+MSM-mendacity aligned in a harmonic convergence that would never be repeated.
And then lightning struck again. Tommy, America is bigger than Rome, but the bigger they come...
Nov '10
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
I'm born and raised in the Old Dominion--and I agree with your post, Sophist. And I'd go one further: I feel caught between two Americas here without really fitting into either one. It's lonely.
Nov '10
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
You've hit on something fundamental that has changed. There is a great deal of choice in our culture now, but the defacto public culture is now center-left. I'd have denied that before President Obama's reelection, but when portions of the population are so susceptible to propaganda and will not vote even in their own economic interest, something fundamental has changed. Conservatives/libertarians underestimated the importance of cultural institutions; the three primary being media, entertainment, and academia. All are dominated by the left. This means the filter through which low information voters get their news is leftist; entertainment is largely libertine and secular; and kids are not taught civics, Western Civilization, religious values, or a fair reading of American history. Civics becomes what the government can and should do for the citizen (positive rights); Western Civ devolves into listing racism, sexism, homophobia, and oppression by western powers; religion is a dogma to be avoided or perhaps worse, a punchline; and American history becomes a chronicle of America's sins while other cultures are celebrated and examined uncritically.
There was a culture war and we lost. Nothing is sacred. I'm sick about it, but there it is.
Nov '11
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Good point, and well stated.
I'd add one further thought: where do immigrants come to? They come most heavily to the cities, right? Which means that the America they see is, in fact, blue America (for lack of a better term).
So when (if) they hear conservatives calling for assimilation, they hear people demanding that they integrate into a culture they know nothing about.
May '12
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Sophist:
In a sense I have a similar background in that I "emigrated" from New Jersey to Texas in 1977 at the age of 17. At that time my family felt a culture shock, but now I believe that the Texas Culture (and by extension the larger "Southern" or "Fishtown" culture) merely represents the former universal American culture.
Certainly in the 60s and 70s there was a counterculture and you could identify the West Coast as "different", but that was a small minority of the country. Now we truly have these two cultures, which each have nearly equal influence when you consider voting patterns, tax rates, local environmental laws, or the "nanny" laws you cite.
If the Feds wouldn't smother it, perhaps a contest over time between these two cultures would be instructive. To me it's quite clear which cultural exemplar is better: Texas has far superior economic performance than Illinois; Texas handles Hispanic immigrants (legal and illegal) more easily than California; etc. Let people notice how many states move to eliminate income tax or become right-to-work and then note which states grow. "Red versus Blue" a la Walter Russell Mead and may the best prevail.
Nov '10
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
David Williamson: As a 1.0 immigrant, I totally agree. The America that I entered in 1985 has already been fundamentally transformed into something else.
One would think that coming as I do from England I would feel right at home in Mr Obama's Brave New World, but I don't - it reminds me of why I left the UK in the first place.
If anything, I have grown to appreciate English culture, more - so I now find myself somewhat stranded half way across the Atlantic, not totally at home in either place. Rather a bemused, somewhat cynical, spectator.
Anyway, Ricochet helps a lot :) · 15 minutes ago
A long-belated welcome to you who comes from the land of our intellectual fathers. Thank you for the English Common Law, the language, leading the way on eradicating slavery, for Locke, Sidney, Dickens, Handel, Chaucer, Austen, and Shakespeare. But, was it too much to ask that your former countrymen might have kept the National Health Service on their side of the pond?... kidding. Cheers!
Jan '11
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Really good post Sophist. Belated welcome!
I think Dennis Prager's 'American Trinity' is a pretty great place to start (for both immigrants and natural born citizens):
1) 'e pluribus unum' (out of many, one)
2) In God we trust
3) Liberty
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn4IH3yng4k
Edited on January 31, 2013 at 8:12pmOct '12
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
I appreciate the topic, Sophist, but this all sounds a little too rant-ish. Murray's Belmont-Fishtown dichotomy rings true to me, and this development is counter to one of America's many ideals. But this hardly precludes assimilation.
My husband is an immigrant, coming here only some years ago in his early 20s, so I'm only seeing the assimilation process second-hand. However, I know he would agree that, to an immigrant, American culture still differs from others in a few very important ways. Two immediately come to mind: (1) Hard work is admired and will be rewarded (yes, still true). (2) If one learns the language and the aforementioned ideal, he is truly "one of us."
If we moved to his quasi-Western home country, even if I became completely fluent in language and manners, I would still not be considered one of them.
Edited on January 31, 2013 at 8:34pmDec '10
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
That's something I wasn't aware of. What was the other language? Were the schools reflective of the immigrant population in certain areas of the country, and was the bilingual nature different because of them?
Mr She has always said that his ancestors who came over 'on the boat' (on one side, his grandfather's generation, on the other side, great-grandfathers, both from Poland, or some part of Prussia or Germany that is now Poland), refused to teach their children and grandchildren Polish because they wanted them to speak English and assimilate. Is that a common experience?
Dec '10
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Joel Kotkin has labeled this new bifurcation as "the clericy versus the yomenry".
Apr '11
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Really I found America to be very distinctive culturally as compared to Romania. I came over when I was 7.5 years old, and I can honestly say nothing in New Jersey was anything like in Bucharest.
America still has in my opinion a very unique and distinct culture. It is a culture though that is in upheaval (maybe that is not the right word). It is in flux. American culture does not stand still and admire the view, and is bread from the distillation of a thousand different local experiments. The best of which spread out and become part of the basis of everyone's life.
I think the secret to becoming American was learning to embrace the vast smorgasbord of cultural options. America is the culture of options and customization. We are the culture of having it your own way, of extra pickles, and hold the onions. That is what immigrants have to come to grips with, variety.
Now you may fear that we are losing a certain element of cohesion, but I rather think the cultural hegemony of the 50-80's created by MSM was an aberration.
Aug '12
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
She
That's something I wasn't aware of. What was the other language? ....
It depends. Cincinnati and Milwaukee had large German "colonies"; The "Pennsylvania Dutch" was another German (or German-like) area. Many large cities had "Chinatowns" and Yiddish communities, and the Southeast had Spanish/Spanglish. Around Nawlins, Cajun French. Probably others, too. It was part of the local charm. And, of course, there are the Reservations....
Apr '11
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
She
That's something I wasn't aware of. What was the other language? Were the schools reflective of the immigrant population in certain areas of the country, and was the bilingual nature different because of them?...
My understanding is that German was commonly spoken in many parts of the midwest. German words and phrases could find their way into English-language conversations, much like the way many Californians and Texans tend to pick up occasional Spanish words & colloquialisms. I know there are high schools that still offer German as a foreign language option; I assume it's because of our strong immigrant connection to it.
I read somewhere that there was debate back in 1787 whether or not to write the Constitution in German in addition to English...though I suspect that might just be urban legend.
Edited on January 31, 2013 at 10:09pmNov '11
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
Oops. Double post. (Richochet is acting ornery.)
Edited on January 31, 2013 at 10:19pmNov '11
Re: The Joy of Becoming American: Culture, Assimilation, and the Brokenness Thereof
It ain't that complicated.
Learn English.
Get a job or run your own business.
Be honest in your business dealings.
Pay your bills.
Marry the mother/father of your children.
Discipline your children and get them educated.
Don't beat your wife or your children.
Give something to charity.
Go to a church, mosque, or synagogue, etc. every once in a while.
Vote every once in a while.
Dress appropriately for the circumstances.
Join some kind of club or organization.
Mow your grass, wash your car, maintain your property.
Respect your neighbors' property, curb your dog and don't litter.
Say hi to your neighbors.
Root for the home team.
Don't cuss in mixed company or around children.