Should Immigrants assimilate?
... African American population rather than the middle class white Americans, thus forcing them to assimilate with a population of lower status. As with any system there are certain factors that can make on group more vulnerable over another. These factors include: color, location, and the absence of the mobility ladder. Although the majority of immigrants are non-white, many immigrants never experience prejudice. The prejudice comes as a result of moving into a new environment in which there are different values, and biases, where physical features become a handicap. Location is another factor that can make some groups more vulnerable then others. Many times immigrants will migrate to a certain area where they know that there is a group of their people are already living there and have made a life for themselves so they can be around their same culture still, while also working in a better environment. The Irish for example received little if any prejudice and a much easier assimilation process because of the environment that they move into. Irish immigrants normally move into areas of Boston where Irish communities are readily established. Other majorities of immigrants move into the cities where they are in close contact with those who are native born. Unfortunately these immigrants are more than not poverty stricken which leads the majority to identify them as the poor. For the population of immigrants who seek work, they are for the most part employed for manual labor jobs that rarely give opportunity for advancement. Just as some groups are more vulnerable to the downsides of political systems, other groups are more fortunate to have these systems work to their advantage. There are three types of programs that ease assimilation of contemporary immigrants, thus making them less likely to be products of downward assimilation that results from vulnerability. Certain groups are notably political refugees and eligible for government programs, grants, and scholarships for the advancement of themselves and their children. Cubans, Southeast Asians, and Europeans often fall in this category. These are also those groups who have managed to slip through the cracks and to escape prejudice that is normally endured by immigrants. The Irish are included in these. Finally there are certain resources made available through networks in the co-ethnic community. Back home in Philadelphia, PA, there is a section of the city devoted to Asians, more so, the Chinese. In this part of the city there are schools that only admit Chinese children and places of employment that employ only the Chinese. In my opinion this is an example of one of the resources available to help immigrants assimilate without out too much of a culture shock. This tight nit community has one of the best turnouts as far as individuals graduating form high school going on to college. As a result of these programs or resources, the groups that are applicable do not have to assimilate in order to reap certain benefits. These preexisting communities can also can also have the tendency to do harm in the for of ostricization by those who are native born, There are two groups imparticular that illustrate the three features of social context; they are the Punjabi Sikhs and the Caribbeans. The Punjabi Sikhs did what was referred to as “selective” assimilation, which is conforming, but not abandoning ones culture, and beliefs. As with being immigrants, they were one of the groups at risk for downward assim...