What is your experience with immigrants?
i hear lots of talks about 1st generation children "assimilating" into this culture, but my experiences is different: there is a great deal of intergration- e.g. some of my friends dont speak their native language or remember little. most are reluctant to disclose their family origin. this is also true for 2nd generation children -- they seem to lose some of their traditional family values.
Answer:
In my life I had seen immigrants assimilate themselves into the American lifestyle and language to better appreciate what is on the other side of the fence. They spoke English, learned the American history, know of the many cultures we have, while the whole time they kept and cherished their language and culture from where they originated but appreciated what was given to them. No-one asked that they abandon all they have for the American dream, but learn the language, being good immigrants citizens (like those of the past were, a lot of your great grandparents and family members before you would disagree with what is going on today)), and hard workers that you were all known for and to be. Your people before you left a great impact in the American people ways and culture, but the new illegal immigrants have turned the minds of many Americans today.
that is sad, people should be proud of their origin, every culture has something fascinating about them.
MY EXPIRIENCE. ILLEGALS ARE GREAT PEOPLE.THEY WORK HARD. THEY COME HERE TO GIVE THEIR FAMILY A BETTER LIFE. THEY DESERVE AMNESTY!!!
PROUD TO BE A MEXICAN!!
If the sun refused to shine
I dont mind, I dont mind
If the mountains ah, fell in the sea
Let it be, it aint me.
Got my own world to live through and uh, ha !
And I aint gonna copy you.
Yeah (sing the song brother...)
Now if uh, six uh, huh, turned out to be nine
Oh I dont mind, I dont mind uh
If all the hippies cut off all their hair
Oh I dont care, oh I dont care.
Dig.
cause Ive got my own world to live through and uh, huh
And I aint gonna copy you.
White collar conservative flashin down the street
Pointin their plastic finger at me, ha !
Theyre hopin soon my kind will drop and die but uh
Im gonna wave my freak flag high, high !
Oww !
Wave on, wave on...
Ah, ha, ha
Fall mountains, just dont fall on me
Go ahead on mister business man, you cant dress like me
Yeah !
Dont nobody know what Im talkin about
Ive got my own life to live
Im the one thats gonna die when its time for me to die
So let me live my life the way I want to
Yeah, sing on brother, play on drummer
QUE VIVA MEXICO y NUESTRA GENTE!
I am 1st generation..I have really "lost" my culture, in the sense that once my parents came to this country, they didn't really practice all the traditions and celebrations, they were lost.I have just recently rediscovered my Mexican culture..Its really amazing, I have started traveling to Mexico, just to reconnect back to my roots.There was a time I was "embarrassed" to disclose my heritage, for fear of being discriminated against.But today I am so happy to find my "roots" and its been a very enriching experience...I have missed so much of the culture, like the how the culture views the dead and death itself..For Mexicans, its a celebration.Here it is a time to morn.
My Spanish is very poor...I have been really trying to relearn it.Its been a struggle, my husband helps me a lot.He is a Mexican national, but he is Spanish.He tells me he is more Mexican than I am.But your right, once you are born in this country and you are children of immigrants, unless your parents are very strong with their heritage, you do loose much of the culture and traditions.great question
What I have found is the1st Generation seem to have no or very little alliance to their heritage,then when getting to 2nd Generation they then seem to take on upholding heritage values, more so when from certain cultures.
They then seem to call on their cultural background if it suits them in any political fallout or disruption as it seems as a defence whatsoever..r2
My kids have 100% assimilated. Actually it was easy - they never learned the language of the old country (thought it was too hard) at home we always spoke English and in school had no problems (grades are off the subject ;-)
BTW - I came in the US legally.
My experience with the ones who are legal - is that the first generation fits right in with the rest of America, and Americans...
The second generation that also came legal - doesn't speak the English Language real well. But still got the joke when I asked "Did you see those horses with sunglasses?" (as I drove by, and pointed out the horses in the coral wearing eye-blinders.) The dude was laughing so hard I thought he was going to fall out of the truck.
They took our jobs!!!!
my husband was born in the u.s his parents legally migrated here from Mexico. he doesn't like the Mexican culture and doesn't associate himself with it. he is embarrassed of speaking Spanish most of the time and gets upset if people assume he does speak Spanish just because his skin is brown. he knows very little Spanish. he is an awesome person with his own uniqueness and he doesn't want to be labeled or clumped into a group. he does love Mexican food though. but that's pretty much it for him. he definitely doesn't approve of illegals coming into our country. he is an awesome person.
Are you asking the native americans?? You can read history and see what their experience was with euro immigrants.
It really depends on the parents and how educated, smart and conscious they are. I have seen families getting bogged down with careers and survival and not spending enough time with children. They don't speak to children in their native language and things like that. I have seen other parents who are very busy and children are highly educated but still connected to best of both worlds- native country (language, food, culture) and US-true land of opportunity. Children from families where parents are either extremely busy, poor or uneducated tend to be the ones who seem to get lost in the glare of new country. I know that there is no direct hard and fast rule. And truth lies between embracing the country of stay, your present and your future as well as paying attention to your roots and adhering to some strong values.
A good friend of mine, since we were 10 (it's now 18 years later...lol), moved here (from the Philippians) with her family when she was a little. Because she and her siblings have lived here for so much of their lives they are very much American and a part of our 'culture,' but they still have close ties with the culture their family comes from and it's still a part of who they are. When it's just them they largely speak their first language at home, with some English thrown in here and there.
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