Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush said the United States was “creeping toward multiculturalism” and that was the wrong direction for America to take, according to CNN.
I can understand his sentiments to a certain extent.
He said he believes the U.S. should not be “isolated pockets” of cultures and societies.
That is true. In a country as big as the U.S., and with so many different groups of people living here, we can’t be exclusive. To misunderstand another culture is to misinterpret who they are as people.
He then said U.S. citizens should work toward creating one, assimilated American culture. That’s where I disagree. American culture is distinctly American because it is so mixed and diverse.
I love that I can find pockets of amazing German food and culture when I visit family in Cincinnati. I love that I have a beautiful silver and turquoise cuff I got in the Southwest from a Native American jewelry store. I love that my childhood was defined by a hilarious twist of Irish conservatism. I love that the best Mexican restaurant on the planet was right down the street from me when I was growing up.
To have an assimilated society means losing the key things that allow people to share and explore cultures when they intersect.
I understand how Bush could think assimilation would fix race relations in the States — when everyone is the same, it would seem there would be no need for discrimination, violence or fear.
But there’s another avenue it doesn’t seem he’s taken into consideration — integration.
American culture is great when there is integration and sharing and people make serious attempts to learn about and respect others without trying to appropriate aspects of their culture or do away with the parts they don’t understand.
Color-blindness and erasure causes more problems than good. It excludes individual experiences and stories in favor of creating a singular narrative or box, which then ostracizes those who fall outside of that box and dehumanizes them for not conforming.
It denies people the right to have, and access, their cultures and histories, which are so incredibly important when understanding how race and race relations have developed in the U.S. and abroad.
At a time when race tensions are so high, we need to attempt to communicate and understand each other instead of excluding each other or forcing others to be like you.
It’s difficult to understand and appreciate a culture that’s vastly different from yours, but that doesn’t give you the right to deny someone their cultural experiences because you don’t like it or it scares you.
So if the U.S. is creeping toward multiculturalism, that makes me happy. Because as Americans, that’s what should be happening anyway.
ewenning@indiana.edu
