Hello! I do not want you to write an essay for me by any means. I am just comple

Question

Hello! I do not want you to write an essay for me by any means. I am just completely lost, without inspiration or direction. I am hoping for a few ideas to build from. It's for a composition class, so facts and figures are not important. You'll find the prompt below. Thank you!

A person’s view of America is substantially influenced by how one got here—by choice or by force—and how well one has integrated into the dominant culture. Immigrants choosing to come to the United States have historically integrated faster and fared better than those forced to become Americans.

–Keith Phillips Out of Ashes

Write a well-organized and well-developed essay in which you do the following:

Describe with examples the differences between two specific ethnic groups with regard to their historical experience in America. Indicate the positive and negative experiences of that population’s integration into American society.

Indicate the degree to which you feel an individual’s successful contribution to America and enjoyment of American opportunities depends on that person’s race and ethnic experience.

Explanation / Answer

In different times and places racial boundaries are drawn in very different ways. In the U.S. a person is considered “Black” if they have any African ancestry. This extreme form of binary racial classification reflects the so-called “one-drop rule” that became the standard system of racial classification in the U.S. after the Civil War. Racial classifications do not logically imply racial oppression i.e. a social injustice backed by power. Racial classifications are almost always linked to forms of unjust economic and social inequality, domination, and exclusion. Racism harms disadvantaged groups within the white population in two principle ways. First, racism has repeatedly divided popular social and political movements, undermining their capacity to challenge prevailing forms of power and inequality. The second way that racism has negatively affected the interests of less advantaged segments of the white population is through the ways it has undermined universalistic aspects of the welfare state. They are contrasted with targeted programs that apply only to special, designated groups. Immigrants and their children are not born with more creative talents than native-born citizens, but their selectivity and marginality may have pushed and pulled those with ability into high-risk career paths that reward creative work. The presence of large numbers of talented immigrants in Hollywood, academia, and the high-tech industries has pushed American institutions to be more meritocratic and open to innovation than they would be otherwise. Mastering a new language, living and working among strangers, and coping with the unfamiliar are only some of the challenges faced by immigrants. The Hollywood story of Jolson's life illustrates the popular belief that America is a land of opportunity for talented and hardworking immigrants. The Jolson style did not represent assimilation, but rather the creation of a distinctive “American” genre of musical performance.

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