Life in a Multicultural Society
America is a “melting pot”. We all have heard this expression, and if you live in the US, it is hard for you to argue with it. People from all over the world find their new home in the country, which opened its doors for everyone who was in need. Former citizens of Morocco and Philippines, Russia and Poland, Mexico and Italy build their new lives in the “land of the free, and the home of the brave”. Most of the people, including myself, think that such a “melting pot”, is what makes this country so irresistibly special and great. It is what makes it different from any other place. America provides the real freedom and equality to all its citizens, and that makes people appreciate their new homeland even more. But although everything stated above is true, nevertheless some American people concern that such a “domestic internationalism” and such a broad variety of different cultures and backgrounds in one country will lead to an inability for a social unity and compromise. Some think that in the time of trouble the United States will not be so “united”, since they consist of a number of multicultural groups that have very different opinions about social and political issues concerning the wellbeing of the American population.
So is it possible for a country to be a “one nation under G-d”, in spite of it’s variety of multicultural heritages? To answer this question, I will give you an example of another country, which is in a very similar social situation. Israel is one of the youngest countries in the world, and does not have its own native population. Over ninety percent of its population consists of fresh immigrants from dozens of different countries of Eastern Europe, Africa, America and Middle East, whose cultures are nothing alike. Indeed, Israel is the country of different cultures! And after all, how can you expect a first generation immigrant from Morocco to get along with a Polack that just moved to Israel from his little town in eastern Poland? Can they unite for the common cause? Yes, they can. And in Israel, they do every day. In spite of enormous differences in their views, they have a reason to feel a passionate brotherly love for each other, and that reason is their little country. Their new little home with its pluses and minuses, with its problems and worries.
Walking on a street of any city in Israel, it is hard to see two people that look alike: all the possible shades of skin color, hair, faces, national dresses, religious outfit attributes of all the religions in the world… But when the time comes, all of them are nothing but one people, one nation, relating and feeling for each other.
One of the best examples of the ability and will of these different people to unite is the Memorial Day. In Israel, the Memorial Day is the day of memory for all of those who gave their lives for the land of Israel. One of the biggest emotional attributes of that day is the air raid siren that is played in every corner of the country. When the sirens wails, the whole country comes to a standstill. It is an emotional moment as Israelis unite in their sorrow over the loss of those who have given their lives for the State. Given the small size of the country (five million) and the number of fallen (over 200,000), it is hard to find someone was not the relative or friend of a fallen soldier. Here is how the Memorial Day is described by a famous Israeli writer Avi Hein in his book “Yom A-Zikaron”:
Perhaps the most widely recognized commemoration, as on Yom HaShoah, an air raid siren is played twice during Yom Ha-Zikaron. All activity, including traffic, immediately ceases. People get out of their cars, even in the middle of otherwise busy highways, and stand in respect for the sacrifice of those who died defending Israel. The first siren marks the beginning of Memorial Day and the second is sounded immediately prior to the public recitation of prayers in military cemeteries. During the siren, the whole country comes to a standstill - people stop working, children stop playing, and even drivers stop driving. Everyone stands at attention in silence as the siren wails in memory of the fallen. It is a very emotional and difficult day in Israel as this small country remembers the many young soldiers who have given their lives so the Jewish State could exist.
Such consideration for each others feelings carries a great amount of love for the fellow citizens in spite of their cultural differences. This is an example of a “brick” that brings people together, makes them understand how close to each other they really are, and how all those differences are irrelevant in the eyes of a common issue.
Here in America, we also have such a “brick”. It is Freedom. The Freedom that was given to all of us in the equal manner. America is indeed a “melting pot” and that is what makes this country so unique, so desirable, and so amazing. And every social group has to value and watch over their unique qualities such as their history and culture. They have to be proud of their heritage, and in no way to be ashamed of it, or try to forget it. But we are people of one nation, and in the difficult time we have to stand up for what our country stands for. We have to unite and help each other, seeing nothing but a friend and a fellow American in each other no matter what our cultural differences could be. Because that what America was meant to be, and that is what it is destined to retain.
So is it possible for a country to be a “one nation under G-d”, in spite of it’s variety of multicultural heritages? To answer this question, I will give you an example of another country, which is in a very similar social situation. Israel is one of the youngest countries in the world, and does not have its own native population. Over ninety percent of its population consists of fresh immigrants from dozens of different countries of Eastern Europe, Africa, America and Middle East, whose cultures are nothing alike. Indeed, Israel is the country of different cultures! And after all, how can you expect a first generation immigrant from Morocco to get along with a Polack that just moved to Israel from his little town in eastern Poland? Can they unite for the common cause? Yes, they can. And in Israel, they do every day. In spite of enormous differences in their views, they have a reason to feel a passionate brotherly love for each other, and that reason is their little country. Their new little home with its pluses and minuses, with its problems and worries.
Walking on a street of any city in Israel, it is hard to see two people that look alike: all the possible shades of skin color, hair, faces, national dresses, religious outfit attributes of all the religions in the world… But when the time comes, all of them are nothing but one people, one nation, relating and feeling for each other.
One of the best examples of the ability and will of these different people to unite is the Memorial Day. In Israel, the Memorial Day is the day of memory for all of those who gave their lives for the land of Israel. One of the biggest emotional attributes of that day is the air raid siren that is played in every corner of the country. When the sirens wails, the whole country comes to a standstill. It is an emotional moment as Israelis unite in their sorrow over the loss of those who have given their lives for the State. Given the small size of the country (five million) and the number of fallen (over 200,000), it is hard to find someone was not the relative or friend of a fallen soldier. Here is how the Memorial Day is described by a famous Israeli writer Avi Hein in his book “Yom A-Zikaron”:
Perhaps the most widely recognized commemoration, as on Yom HaShoah, an air raid siren is played twice during Yom Ha-Zikaron. All activity, including traffic, immediately ceases. People get out of their cars, even in the middle of otherwise busy highways, and stand in respect for the sacrifice of those who died defending Israel. The first siren marks the beginning of Memorial Day and the second is sounded immediately prior to the public recitation of prayers in military cemeteries. During the siren, the whole country comes to a standstill - people stop working, children stop playing, and even drivers stop driving. Everyone stands at attention in silence as the siren wails in memory of the fallen. It is a very emotional and difficult day in Israel as this small country remembers the many young soldiers who have given their lives so the Jewish State could exist.
Such consideration for each others feelings carries a great amount of love for the fellow citizens in spite of their cultural differences. This is an example of a “brick” that brings people together, makes them understand how close to each other they really are, and how all those differences are irrelevant in the eyes of a common issue.
Here in America, we also have such a “brick”. It is Freedom. The Freedom that was given to all of us in the equal manner. America is indeed a “melting pot” and that is what makes this country so unique, so desirable, and so amazing. And every social group has to value and watch over their unique qualities such as their history and culture. They have to be proud of their heritage, and in no way to be ashamed of it, or try to forget it. But we are people of one nation, and in the difficult time we have to stand up for what our country stands for. We have to unite and help each other, seeing nothing but a friend and a fellow American in each other no matter what our cultural differences could be. Because that what America was meant to be, and that is what it is destined to retain.
Labels: Alexander Makedonsky
posted by Alexander Makedonsky at
4:27 PM
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