Cultural Diversity - Research Paper Example

Cultural Diversity: The largest percentages of foreigners living in my community are the Hispanics. It is approximated, that one out of six people in California are Hispanics. This represents an approximate percentage of 37%. Eastman (16) identifies the Hispanics as people whose heritage is Spanish, and hail from the Spanish speaking countries of Latin America. This people come from Mexico, Cuba, Venezuela, and Puerto Rico. Majority of these foreigners come to United States of America, for purposes of searching for jobs, and other financial and economic benefits (Eastman, 17).

Some of them run away from their countries because of political persecutions, and a good example are immigrants from Cuba (Gabaccia, 25). Gabaccia identifies the regime of Fidel Castro as playing a role in the immigration of Cubans to United States of America (19). He further states that the regime was oppressive to them, and to save their economic wealth, they had to run to capitalistic states such as United States of America (Gabbacia, 26). California has the largest number of Hispanic immigrants in United States of America.

51% of Children in California are Hispanics, the population of this foreigners amounted to 4.6 million people (Eastman, 19). This was in Los Angeles, California. Eastman observes that the Mexicans are the largest Hispanic group in California, with an approximate percentage of 60% of the Hispanics (31). 10% are from Puerto Rico, while 3% come from Cuba, Venezuela, and other Latin American countries. In 2011, the Hispanics amounted to about 16% of the American population, and this was an approximate value of 50 million people (Gabbacia, 21).

One of the most notable cultures among the Hispanics is the Spanish language in itself. This language has played an important role in influencing the American culture. Even though the Hispanics speak English, they use the Spanish language to bond with their families. This culture has spread in United States of America. An example is depicted in the school curriculum of some states, whereby they encourage their students to learn foreign languages, such as Spanish (Eastman, 28). By doing this, they promote the Spanish language in United States of America.

There are schools of higher learning that teaches Spanish and French languages to students willing to learn. Basing on this, one way in which these societies have influenced the American culture is the spread of the Spanish language (Gabbacia, 36). It has also influenced the growth of a slang language that is a mixture of English and Spanish. Names such as “seniour” emanate from a mixture of English language, for a senior person, with Spanish language (Eastman, 12). A large percentage of the Hispanics practice the Catholic religion and its traditions (Gabbacia, 31).

This has had an impact in United States of America, because it contributes to the spread of Roman Catholicism. Because of their influence, Catholic cathedrals are built across the state, promoting its rise, and the practice of such religion among the indigenous Americans themselves. A good example is President Bush acknowledgement of the importance of the Hispanics to the conservative American Republicans, because of their deep roots in Catholic religion (Eastman, 20). The President saw them as an important voting block to the republicans, in the coming years.

This people have influenced the use of their names among the residents of United States of America. Some citizens of America give Spanish names to their Children, and they practice some Hispanic dances, such as Rhumba, and the Cuban Salsa. Works Cited:Eastman, Cari Lee Skogberg. Shaping the immigration debate: contending civil societies on the US-Mexico border. Boulder, Colo.: FirstForumPress, 2012. Print. Gabaccia, Donna R.. Foreign relations: American immigration in global perspective. Princeton, NJ [u.a.: Princeton Univ.

Press, 2012. Print.