Increasing National Diversity

Racial and Ethnic Minorities Gain in the Nation as a Whole
By ROBERT PEAR

The nation as a whole is moving in the direction of California and Texas, where members of racial and ethnic minorities account for more than half the population.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/12/national/12census.html?th&emc=th

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I don't like the (racist) application of the term 'race' to ethnic groups, but for what it is worth we continue to become a more diverse nation -- a marvelous thing IMHO, which in part justifies the genocidal entry of my British ancestors into what they considered to be THEIR Manifest Destiny or New Israel:

http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/joshua/manifest.html

When I was a kid growing up in Farmington, Connecticut, an outer suburb of Hartford, Main Street literally divided the worlds of Irish and Italian Catholics who lived west of it down to the Farmington River from the Anglo-Saxons who lived eastward up the hill. Our snowball fights on the playground (with rocks therein) tended to fall out around ethnic divisions. I recall in sixth grade finding most attractive, Nancy B., who was, alas, from the 'wrong' side of Main Street. Happily that major wall of prejudice broke down along with the civil rights era and JFK in the 1960s. And interestingly enough we Anglo Saxons are now far out numbered now by those whom we gave such a rough time upon arrival here. The stats of our 'minority' groups when I last looked ran something along the lines in order of size: German, Italian, Anglo, Irish (I may have the Irish and Italian interchanged).

An excellent book by Steinberg of Queens College, CUNY, that I got to review back when made the point that it takes a generation or two to get fully on board in the U.S. If from a rural background, it is likely to require two -- the first to adjust to urban living where most immigrants settle first. From an urban background -- as many of our students at CUNY now -- one generation will make it with parents sending their kids to Harvard or CUNY law.

Your futures will undoubtedly see this evolution in process. Some of you come from endogamous cultural backgrounds -- pressures to stay married within your group. Others are as my family, exogamous (tend to marry out of our group). I play it safe and answer 'other' to those damned racist census questions. Enjoy!
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