What Is America? That Has Been The Question Many People From Different Cultural Values Have Asked. There Are Various Points Of View Of What America Consists Of. Some Are Positive, Some Are Negative, But What Is The Reality Behind This “IdealÐ

What is America? That has been the question many people from different cultural values have asked. There are various points of view of what America consists of. Some are positive, some are negative, but what is the reality behind this “ideal” place? Bharati Mukherjee an American writer from an Indian background, shared her experiences in Imagining Homeland and what migrating to another environment is all about. Many people, especially minorities, have the dream and desire to reach the grounds of America for a better life, and an opportunity to be successful, But is that the outcome once they have reached their destination? America indeed is an open door of opportunities, but that door is just an idea, a multicolored myth of shared values. The diversity of cultures and ethnicities in America has, creates a road of chaos and not a place of unity.

Many ethnicities meet in America such as Chinese, African Americans, Hispanics, Middle Eastern and all have different traditions. They migrate with a common purpose which is to improve their economic status. As they leave their homelands to enter a new environment, they bring with them their customs and that is the start of chaos. Small communities are formed; for example, in New York City, there is the Puerto Rican population in El Barrio, Dominican population in the Heights, Indian population in Jackson heights Queens, and Chinatown a small community of Chinese population. In formed communities, people tend to isolate themselves; therefore, do not get involved and explore other cultures in America. They get use to their traditions and beliefs, eating the same food, shopping the same stores, and kids attending the same school. The populations in these communities don’t associate with others and influences the disunity between in America.

Our history as the country of opportunities consisted of wars, racism, and activists fighting for equality. Racism has been a key factor to the disunity of this country for more than 135 years. The long fight between African Americans and white during the civil rights movements lead to severe violence and discrimination. The opportunities in obtaining an education and using public facilitates were limited for African Americans. They didn’t receive a proper treatment as humans. In personal experience, my dad came to the United States in 1968. He felt accomplished for leaving his homeland and reaching America. He had the schema that America was a place that offered opportunities and success. As he reached the United States, he had a big desire to obtain a higher education by attending to the most prestigious school in New York City (NYU.) Unfortunately, he came across a reality that was unexpected; he was rejected due to his appearance, ethnicity, and economic status. When he first decided to register he had to meet with a Dean to discuss his admission. He was very eager to start college but the Dean responded: Have you looked at your self? Do you really think you belong here? And do u have even have money to pay for your education I don’t think so. I think you should go somewhere else where they accept someone of your kind. When my dad heard these words he was shocked and hurt. He did not believe someone can say something like that and was very confused, but there he realized America is not what it seemed. For 9 months, he did