After last week’s post, do you think I have gone soft? No, I expect everyone in our country to abide by our laws. Following customs is a matter of respect and courtesy, not a moral imperative. Although the American1 Way and Christianity are increasingly mispracticed, they have served the country well, and I advocate correcting them, not abandoning them.
No Worries
Complaints about foreign immigrant invasions and a lack of assimilation have existed throughout history. While it seems unimaginable today, the Catholic Irish and Italians were accused of it and subjected to hostile discrimination.
If history is any guide (and it is), the good old American Way will overwhelm foreign traditions. Look around you or in the mirror. Which US-born descendant of immigrants, even a first-generation one, identifies more with their ancestors’ country than with the US?
Sure, some pride remains, and they might celebrate Columbus (oops!) or St. Patrick’s Day, but it is more of an excuse to celebrate than an honor to their ancestry.
The descendants of my dear grandmother who hailed from Ireland eschew pints of Guinness for cans of Budweiser. After my Italian aunts pass, my cousins will forgo the laborious process of jarring tomatoes in favor of canned ones (my dad surrendered decades ago).
A Different Breed?
The last time I was in New York City, I stopped at a pizza shop. The owner’s name and his facial hair gave away his religious affiliation (profiling reminiscent of the Nazis?). Mohammed served me a good, not great, slice of haram pepperoni pizza. I do not think he had been in the land of the free for long, but he had switched his allegiance to its God, the dollar, not to deny my taste buds or his wallet.
A couple of weeks ago, I met a Muslim Afghan immigrant who was deeply grateful to live in the US. He escaped the Taliban, which had killed his grandfather and uncle, and works two jobs to send money home to support his extended family. Ahmed told me that his children were too young to remember the harsh life in Afghanistan, and had already adopted the American custom of complaining about matters of privilege in this land of plenty.2
As I mentioned in last month’s post about Peru, American culture infiltrates and corrupts those in foreign lands. Peruvians watch our trashy reality TV shows and eat our awful fast food. What hope do those who live here have against our juggernaut?
It is more likely that the children of Muslim immigrants will eat pepperoni (Allah-forbid) pizza with ranch dressing, wear ripped jeans, drink Coca-Cola, listen to hip-hop, and post duck-face selfies on Instagram rather than attend services, just like their Christian classmates.
Affairs of the Heart
It is true that many immigrants keep to themselves and find it difficult to assimilate because of language barriers, cultural differences, or discrimination from locals. However, romance works well to overcome these obstacles. Many, driven by passion, crawl under the fence or accept those who do.
My Irish Catholic grandmother married a Polish Jew. Neither I nor any of my descendants practice Catholicism or Judaism, and we haven’t had a pot of corned beef and cabbage on the stove or eaten an apple-sauce-covered latke in a decade.
Errata
The worried need only look at themselves to temper their attitude. Unless you are a descendant of those we have caged on reservations, your family tree originated elsewhere.
We should also consider what they might teach us. Immigrants appear to be more industrious and entrepreneurial than the native-born.
Finally, we might have things to apologize for. We appropriate their kabobs and hummus and, in return, offer Twinkies laced with chemicals and artery-clogging potato chips.
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Of course, I wish some immigrants respected our culture more, but I am confident that time is on our side. For better or worse, we will turn them into us.
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1 I know the United States is not America, but part of it.
2 Even privilege needs improvement, but we need to balance ambition with gratitude.
