Ryan Vance
Dr. Miller
GOVT 329-B01
February 4th, 2020
Discussion Board Forum 3
It has been said that America is a melting pot in that people from all over come and melt into
something that is uniquely American. America has also been described as a salad where people
don’t change who they are, they just get mixed in with others who keep their own cultural
heritages. In light of past issues with slavery and racism, which statement is truer? Also, what is
the best way for America to draw from its many cultural influences to contribute to the idea of
American Exceptionalism and to move beyond past issues like slavery and racism?
The United States of America is a melting pot of people and cultures. The United States
has been created by immigrants, and immigration is a key component of American
exceptionalism. Hundreds of different ethnicities, cultures, and races make up the United States.
However, this nation is unified by the fact that all people follow American laws and are
productive citizens to American culture. One author, Charles Murray, notes that, “The Pre-
Revolutionary setting rigorously selected immigrants to have many of the qualities that the
Founders depended upon to make the Constitution work” (Murray, 2013). The key attribute that
makes America a melting pot is the idea of assimilation. Assimilation is key to ensuring that
America maintains its status as a melting pot and to ensure that immigration is fruitful for the
United States. This idea is rooted in the idea that you can celebrate your culture and heritage of
your family and past country, but at the end of the day you are American and fly our nations flag.
This belief has escaped the current immigration process and as a result, a significant portion of
people coming to our country come for the opportunity and the wealth that America brings them.
According to Charles Murray, “As the American welfare state has expanded, the risks of
immigrating to the United States and starting from scratch that once were such an effective
mechanism for selecting people with unusual determination have been eroded” (Murray, 2013).
Today, many immigrants have shown to not believe in our values or what America stands for,
resulting in a very polarized, racial, and political atmosphere. The immigration policy of the
United States must be reformed in order to maintain a melting pot of cultures, who at the end of
the day, all hold the same fundamental beliefs that our Founders shared. Matthew Spalding from
the Heritage Foundation states, “America is exceptional because, unlike any other nation, it is
dedicated to the principles of human liberty, grounded on the truths that all men are created equal
and endowed with equal rights” (Spalding, 2010). The United States is great because we are all
united in the idea of promoting freedom, justice and individual liberty across the free world.
When we allow people to come into our nation that do not coincide with our beliefs, it creates a
more divided populous that limits the effectiveness of American power projection. Assimilation
is vital to the future of American unity, preserving the fabric of America, and unleashing the full
potential of the American people.
Murray, Charles A. American Exceptionalism: an Experiment in History. Washington, D.C.: AEI
Press, 2013.
Spalding, Matthew. “Why Is America Exceptional?” The Heritage Foundation, October 1,
2010.https://www.heritage.org/american-founders/report/why-america-exceptional.
Replies:
Hannah Schanz
Dear Hannah,
Well done on your post, I found it to be very fascinating and completely factual regarding
the points you made. It is of upmost importance that our nation does not forget its history, in
relation to slavery and racism, and must work to build off our past mistakes. History has taught
us that if a nation does learn from its past, it will end up repeating the mistakes they made.
Ronald Reagan states that, “If we forget what we did, we won’t know who we are.”[1]
Remembering the past reminds us of the severity and the tremendous issues that plagued our
nation and we must fully comprehend these in order to make a better future for ourselves and our
posterity and preserve the union. At the end of the day, the goal is to fight for a better future for
our children and American democracy. By reflecting on our past and making the appropriate
changes to our societal institutions, we can create a nation that upholds and promotes equality,
equity, and justice for all. This will allow us as a country to achieve full healing and restoration
so that our people will be stronger than ever before.
[1] Eric Metaxas, If You Can Keep It: the Forgotten Promise of American Liberty (New York:
Penguin Books, 2017))
Lorenzo Simpson
Dear Simpson,
I disagree with the fact that you stated America is a salad bowl because in reality, the
United States is a melting pot of cultures and individuals, who at the end of the day, believe in
the same core values. While I do agree with you that many in this nation keep their religious and
cultural heritages, this does not define America as a salad bowl. One author, Bruce Thornton,
notes that “The image of the melting pot drew its strength from the idea of unity fostered by
beliefs and ideals-not race, blood or sect.”[1] America is compiled of immigrants, but
assimilation is the key component of American exceptionalism and successful immigration.
People come from different cultures, races, and ethnicities where they support and celebrate their
heritage. However, by coming to this nation, individuals are united by a set of beliefs outlined in
the Constitution. In addition, I found your comments about American racial relations and
immigration discouraging as we have come a long way in mending inequality among races. Also,
not recognizing assimilation as a vital part of American society dismisses the entire accurate
immigration culture that has made this country exceptional. The idea that racism has gotten
worse is an utter farce. President Trump has established thousands of opportunity zones for the
minority communities and he has also passed sweeping criminal justice reform, becoming a
champion for the minorities of the United States.
Bruce Thornton, Melting Pots and Salad Bowls. (Hoover Digest, Hoover Institution, 2012)
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