I've struggled with identifying as an American. Growing up in Leawood, Kansas, a predominately white society and quite sheltered in my opinion, I was never exposed to the concepts of discrimination and bias. I was homeschooled through middle school and attended an all girls' Catholic private high school. Yet, throughout all the school years' of drama that I naively thought at the time was the worst kind of social prejudice, I rarely truly experienced the sharp sting of being told I would never be "American."
After taking an intercultural communications class this semester, I had the opportunity to understand why people discriminate against others. I learned how unfair biased labels towards minority out-groups were created.
My intercultural communications class addressed several metaphors for how others see our country's multi-cultural identity. When I found out the "melting pot" metaphor was now an old and inaccurate metaphor, I was genuinely surprised. You might wonder, why isn't a "melting pot" a good metaphor for us (get it?) anymore?
It's not an accurate metaphor because a melting pot suggests that the United States forces other groups to discard their national heritage and become one with ours. But isn't that what immigrants are suppose to do? They're coming to OUR country, working OUR jobs, taking their children to OUR schools? Isn't adopting the American culture the least they could do for all the wonderful opportunities WE are providing for them?
Um...no. I'm not going to get into the mess of trying to argue every single point listed above. However, I would like to use an example that significantly effected me.
One of the most interesting things that I've learned in my intercultural communications class is that the United States is an extremely ethnocentric country. This means that we tend to compare other countries and other cultures with our own. Think about that for a minute.
One classic example my professor used was how in Europe, people say American cars have the steering wheel on the left side. What do you think Americans say about Europeans?
"Wow, those Europeans have their steering wheels on the wrong side of their car."
Do you see the difference? One group merely observes a difference between two parties. The other group compares one party with themselves and the result is usually the other party is doing it wrong.
So. What metaphor do we use now to describe the United States? A salad bowl with independent ingredients that when mixed together, creates an environment where all flavors can be equally appreciated.
Why?
Think about the difference between a melting pot and a salad. That's why.
