Multiculturalism and Diveristy in America essays

Multiculturalism and Diveristy in America essays One of the foundations of this country is our multiculturalism and the melting pot of American society, the ironic side of that being the fact that throughout history, racism has been an ever present part of the American interaction with the world around it. It seems that every one of our encounters with another culture of people has been carried out with racist intent. Ever since the unjustifiably cruel capture, mass transport, and enslavement of Africans there have been a trail of events that have been influenced by racism. Right along with the enslavement of Africans is the deceit, abuse, and mistreatment of the Native Americans in order to acquire the land that was first theirs. Following that is the warring with Mexico fueled by dreams of manifest destiny, and then the terrible conditions of Asian and Irish immigrants used to build the transcontinental railroad. All of these events came about because we felt we were entitled to something that we were not. Whether it was t heir lives, land, or willingness to work, we either took it from them or took advantage of it. These events went about the way they did because of a racist outlook. We wanted something from someone else, and we took it because of our views of races and cultures that we felt were somehow below ours. If we felt that the cultures and races of other people were equal to ours, we would have respected what was theirs and have treated them in a different fashion than that which we did. This list of events is not by any means an all inclusive timeline of historical events. But when this chain of events, along with the plethora of other examples of racism throughout time, is followed up to the point where our society is at today, it is easy to see that we still live in a country where racism permeates numerous aspects of human interaction. While it has abated greatly, racism yet remains a large part of the social environment we live in. Racism i...