What is America exactly?

Many people refer to America as the land of opportunities or a whole different world. Many
people don’t know or think about the positives and take for granted things such as the freedoms
that the Bill of Rights gives us. Yet, there is a negative side. This could be seen in the
discrimination towards minorities or how the immigrant experience is not easy at all. America
was founded and kept growing because of immigrants. This shows how even outsiders knew
how in America you have the potential to grow. Hundreds of years of immigration have led to the
diverse nature of this country, as people seek opportunities from all over the world in the hope to
have a better life, yet minorities still, unfortunately, have to endure various forms of
discrimination.

Even before America was founded It was seen as a land of opportunities because of the
potential of resources it had back then and even today. In the present time, America it’s still
seen as the land of opportunities because America gives you the tools to be potentially a
successful person who is comfortable with what they are. The reason why many people in
America think that this is still the land of opportunity it’s because of the idea that everyone can
have a job with a low position, and after some time, you may work your way up to a higher
position. This idea is outstanding because many countries didn’t use to believe in this idea
because many lived under monarchies. Education is another part of America that shows how
this is the land of opportunities. American Education is known to be of very high quality. Many
people even fly over from other countries just because of the education they want their children
or themselves to take advantage of. For example, Yezierska in “America and I” is an immigrant
that took advantage of the opportunities that were presented to her even though she started
from the bottom she did not give up and kept giving her best and that lead her to be successful.
“My very joy in doing the work I love hurts me like secret guilt.”( 22). This quote shows how even
immigrants can accomplish their dreams in America. Yezierska's story has shown how everyone
has the potential to become successful if they take advantage of their opportunities and work for
them because not everyone will get successful. That is why she felt guilty because not everyone
especially immigrants will have the opportunity as her, to become successful. Overall everyone
who comes to America has the opportunity to become successful and live the way they choose
to live if they are willing to work to become better and this is what the American mindset should
be a person who takes advantage of the opportunities they are offered.

Diversity has always been conjoined with America. Since the start, Europeans had always
been moving to America because people view America as a way to live a better life and this has
stayed true until today. Diversity is part of America because they make a country that has very
different perspectives and make a multicultural country that varies and is not all the same in the
whole territory because not in every country can you go to the mall and eat Cuban food and
then in front there was also a Mongolian restaurant. This is great because we all can learn
about the different cultures there are, and we get a more open mind about the world. For
example “what is an American?” by Crevecoevur tells us the perspective of Europe and America
in 1781 and how America is one of the few places where you could see people from different
European countries live peacefully in one place. “in no other country. I could point out to you a
man, whose grandfather was an Englishman, whose wife was Dutch, whose son married a
French woman, and whose present four sons have now four wives of different nations.”
(Crevecoveur, 29) The past quote tells us how even back then America was diverse even
though most people were just white they were from different nations. Overall, America being
diverse makes a country where we have a lot of different perspectives and different cultures that
make our culture and even economy richer. Unfortunately, this diversity also leads to the
discrimination people suffer in America which is often not brought up when describing America.

Discrimination unfortunately has always been a negative side of America, but the ones who
had suffered most from this have been the minorities or people who are not white. The most
common reason for discrimination is because people who discriminate don’t like people who
look different. America has suffered from this problem for a long time. For starters, the founding
fathers took over land that belonged to the Native Americans which may not be discrimination
entirely but they treated them as less. Also, the decades of slavery of African and African
Americans should be mentioned because many people back then believed that these people
were things and not persons which is why back then it was morally right to discriminate against
them. In “I too sing America” by Hughes we are told how when company comes the “darker
brother” has to eat in the kitchen because he is seen as less or at a lower level compared to the
“Company” but he still hopes for a better future for their kind. “I am the darker brother. They
send me to eat in the kitchen When company comes”(13). This quote shows how accepted
discrimination was back then and how just being different meant you were treated as a 2nd
class citizen. Overall, discrimination is a huge problem in America. Even today, because of the
amount of diversity, some people still have discriminatory thoughts and blame them for every
little problem there is happening in our country like when people accused Mexicans of taking
away their jobs. This is a sign of how we should stop and think about why are we letting these
things still happen. why should people who look different be looked and treated differently when
just walking on the street? This is very unfortunate because whether we like it or not,
discrimination is one of the negative sides of America.

Therefore America has a lot of good things to offer and even though it may not be as perfect
as many outsiders may think, America overall succeeds to be a country that offers its citizens
the tools to become better people such as the opportunities that many people look forward to
when living in America. This helps them to become or work on something they may like to do.
Also, diversity in America is a great example of how people from many cultures can get along
diversity it’s also the foundation of a very rich culture and even sometimes America is presented
as a “melting pot” or a multicultural society which is good if you want to learn about the world or
maybe if you want to just eat Vietnamese food for lunch and Colombian food for dinner. America
is one of the few places where you could do that. But with diversity, discrimination always comes
too which is pretty unfortunate since America has a lot of great things but discrimination is still
one of the huge negatives America possesses. Having a multicultural society also means that
some people may not accept other cultures or people who come from those other cultures.
Overall, America and being American is a privilege because not many people have the
opportunities Americans have or freedoms the Bill of Rights or the diversity that can open our
minds to the world even though America still suffers from some negatives. America is known
even if is just by a little it tries to improve and that is what makes America unique and great.