What Does It Mean To Be An American?

In modern American society, we ask ourselves about the importance of our cultures. How does our cultural identity define us, if at all—and what exactly does it mean to be an American? Throughout history, and despite a past peppered with racial discrimination, America has always been an amalgamation of countless cultural identities. With this in mind, it can be safely said that in today’s society, race most definitely matters. Before the reasons of why race matters can be determined, we must first define what it means to be an American, the concept of race, and more importantly, ethnicity. The United State’s motto itself is E pluribus unum, “From many, one.” American identity is the epitome of the metaphoric “melting pot.” In terms of race
Though it’s been over forty years since racial segregation was legal in America, many minorities today are still underrepresented, oppressed, and prejudiced against. “White” people of European ancestral heritage who were born in this country are the majority of America’s population and, as such, receive special privileges. As Christina Tinglof notes in her essay, “…whites benefit from the systems of advantages in America.” (colby.edu) Discrimination still takes place in subtle ways. Many achievements and historical milestones are not taught properly in American schools. Archaic viewpoints are perpetuated in more conservative and less diverse areas of America. Tinglof continues on, stating that the race situation today “...quietly benefits and privileges whites in terms of what they receive from systems and
Oscar Casares notes that “...our push to fully assimilate is met with an even greater pull to remain anchored to our family's country of origin.” (nytimes.com) Though other countries may generally define us as obese or obnoxious, there are no single attributes that can be pinned on Americans as a whole. At a population of over 300 million, it’s impossible to classify the American population under one criterion. With so many varied cultural backgrounds, one cannot define being American as one commonly-shared trait. To do so would be making a sweeping generalization; Americans run a wide gamut of cultures and