"I was raised in what I consider to be not a melting pot, but a salad bowl. The onion stayed the onion, the tomato stayed the tomato, the lettuce stayed the lettuce, with maybe a little Russian or Italian dressing. And it tasted real good. no one lost their identity, and I thought that was what life was like."
- Edward James Olmos
When I was a kid studying immigration/Ellis Island the term, “The Great Melting Pot” came up a lot. I use to be proud to be a part of that theory. In my mind it meant that all these different races of people came together, mixed and made America a stronger country.
However, as I grow, learn and find myself I realize I’m not so proud of that term anymore. If you’ve ever seen metals being melted you know that as the metals become hot and liquefy they blend together, gold, silver, copper lose their identity, their unique beauty and become nothing but a molten glob.
I’m a multiracial person. My mother was white and my father was Mexican-American. My mother learned to cook Mexican dishes and my father learned to eat “American” food. There were a lot of times that they just didn’t understand each other’s cultures but they tried to teach us to be proud of our various heritages. It was the outside world that really gave us the most trouble.
Some people who saw our family were confused and others were pissed off. White people saw my mother as a traitor to her race. Latinos believed my father though he was too good to marry a woman of his own race.
When I listen to people talk about making English the official language of the U.S. or that when you come to this country you’re an American and need to act like one I’m bothered. I believe that people who come to this country are looking for a better life which includes contributing to this country, i.e., working, paying taxes, voting, etc. However, just because they become American citizens does not mean they should give up family ties and they should not be expected or required to do so.
I also believe that just because they come to this country it doesn’t mean they should give up their culture/heritage. Our culture is part of our identity and without it who would we be? I spent a decade denying my Latina heritage because I thought it was easier to be white but the truth is it wasn’t because I denied part of who I am as a person.
I want to be part of a salad where everything is its own thing but when mixed together it works. So, I’ll be the lettuce if someone else is the tomatoes.
