Culture Shock

Culture is the Backbone of a society, when something/someone tries to alter it or go against it everyone will notice. In this issue pointed out by Ruth Macklin, we look at the problems that can arise when an individual’s culture and autonomy clash. Every year there at least 30 million immigrants from all over the world that move to the United states of America, making America one of the most culturally diverse country in the world. Keeping this in mind, we will focus on Ruth Macklin’s issue of Multiculturalism. Multiculturalism is the co-existence of diverse cultures, where culture includes racial, religious, or cultural groups and is manifested in customary behaviors, cultural assumptions and values, patterns of thinking, and communicative styles. Critics argue that we associate culture with a society, community and or family, but rarely with a single individual, thus placing it above the individual person. In this paper we are going to look at four different scenarios on from Ruth Macklin’s article.

What Peter Berger means by the first statement, in which he links sociological discovery to culture shock minus geographical displacement, is that sociological discoveries and realizations are very often made in one 's own society. When they are made, they might come off as shocking because they are being viewed in a different light. You can go to the nearest church or park and make new discoveries with what you observe in an open state of mind.

Canada is a country that sets an international standard for the acceptance of people of all cultures and ethnicities, that is why is not surprising that Canada adopted the official policy of multiculturalism in 1971. Canada became the first country in the world to officially adopt multiculturalism therefore linking all citizens and celebrating the multitudes of race, religion, and cultural ethnicities that exist throughout the country (Government of Canada 2012). The policy has been a topic of controversy amongst citizens and scholars due to the belief that it almost has a certain “un-nationalistic” quality that doesn’t put Canadian culture first when in fact, the policy is designed to incorporate all the varying cultures into one unified Canadian

Multiculturalism is raised in section 27 in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Jonson). An instance where multiculturalism negatively impacts Canada, revolves around new immigrants. A problem raised with the introduction of multiculturalism is that “for some people, ‘multiculturalism’ is a descriptive term for demographic pluralism. Pluralism can stem from the coexisting of longstanding minority groups” (Bloemradd, Wright, 2014). This created issues of conflict between minority groups which related to “ethnic, racial, and religious diversity generated by immigrants and their decedents” (Bloemradd, Wright, 2014). The Charters regulations were often taken for granted by minority groups, where many “subnational minorities (…) often reject inclusion within a framework of multiculturalism since they argue got self-determination and sovereignty rights” (Bloemradd, Wright, 2014). Furthermore, these examples of minorities rejecting inclusion exemplifies how multiculturalism is threatened by the Charter. The purpose of the charter was “to enhance multicultural heritage of Canadians” (Uberoi,

In addition, it is seen today that many immigrants choose to come to Canada due to the culturally diverse, welcoming society here. This further proves that foreigners believe that multiculturalism is a big part of Canada, defining its national identity. In summary, the Citizenship Act marked the beginning of multiculturalism in Canada and sparked more events promoting multiculturalism. This resulted in foreigners defining a stereotype of multiculturalism as an important aspect of Canada’s national identity

Multiculturalism has played a significant role in Canada, since its establishment 40 years ago. Much of Canadian society is reflective of different cultures from around the world making multiculturalism a very relevant topic to Canadians. While it can be argued that the majority of Canadians are in favor of multiculturalism, there are some who hold a different opinion. Though some critics claim that multiculturalism promotes a form of ‘hyphenated Canadianism’ that exacerbates divisions in Canadian society based on such characteristics like ethnic, minority, or immigrant status, the social advantages such as how multiculturalism is a source of

For the past two decades, Canadian population is increasingly diverse and multicultural by the huge wave of newcomers who will adopt and immerse different “cultural practices” in contributing to the national development (Parent & Clydesdale, 2016). Canada is also one of the first countries in the world that has issued multicultural official policy since 1971. The concept of multiculturalism is referred to academic views about the equality and respect for variant cultures, religions, races and behaviours within a country. This term has been used to form Canadian identities and strengths for almost a hundred and fifty years. It is essential to make sure that all citizens acknowledge both similarities and differences in Canadian diverse

In Canada we encourage immigrants to keep their own cultural identity but also welcome the values of Canadian cultural as well. So I see it is it a win-win situation being able to identity and retain two different cultures. Being Canadian means a lot. It means equality; equal rights, equal responsibilities and equal opportunity. By taking an active part in our civic affairs, we affirm these rights and strengthen Canada’s democracy, ensuring that a multicultural, integrated and inclusive citizenship will be every Canadian’s inheritance.

First, the Act asserts that all Canadians are entitled to “preserve, enhance, and share their cultural heritage.” Central to this notion is the rejection of other common approaches to ethnic and cultural policies. On the one hand, this tenet rejects earlier Canadian policies of assimilation, where the goal was to encourage minorities to discard their cultural heritage and adopt mainstream Canadian values and practices. Under the official policy of multiculturalism, however, citizens are encouraged to retain their cultural heritage while being recognized as part of Canadian society. Not only does this policy of multiculturalism reject early practices of assimilation, it also distinguishes itself from the “melting pot” approach typically found in the United States. Central to this strategy is the idea that the cultural values and practices of immigrants is best combined with those of mainstream society to form a new and single national culture. Under multiculturalism, however, ethnic groups in Canadian society are encouraged to maintain their ethnic distinctiveness, rather than assimilated into an ever-

In present day Canada, it has widely become known that multiculturalism is a fact of Canadian life. The numbers back this statement as Statistics Canada shows that nearly 6,264,800 people identified themselves as a member of a visible minority group which, represented 19.1% of the total population. Multiculturalism is defined as “the co-existence of diverse cultures, where culture includes racial, religious, or cultural groups and is manifested in customary behaviours”. With this definition, the crucial points become “co-existence of diverse cultures” and “customary behaviors”. In Canada, the numbers show that there exists a large number of visible minority people, around 6,264,800 to be exact, but the real question becomes does this Canada see multiculturalism the same way as the definition? Furthermore, the real question becomes: do new immigrants need to change or adapt in order to co-exist and “fit in” within the Canadian society/culture? In the shortest possible answer, Yes. Immigrants do need to change and adhere to Canadian customs and norms, and most important of all: Canadian rules and laws. To elaborate, this doesn’t suggest for the immigrants to forget to assimilate and give up their culture, immigrants freely choose their new citizenship because they want to be Canadians 2. This change should be limited to a certain extent. Lastly this change is unlikely to happen without Canadian support. In the past, and even today condescending guidelines and racism has

Multiculturalism was first adopted by Canada in 1971, officially becoming a policy to fully affirm the value and dignity of all Canadian citizens regardless of one’s racial or ethnic group, language, or any kind of religious affiliation . Throughout these years, Canada failed to successfully address the ethno-cultural in regards to the federal government’s attempt to fully support the maintenance and development of cultural communities and the concept of independence for the citizens and also neglected the Indigenous peoples and French Canadians. Multiculturalism was first adopted to establish a promise to recognize and respect the values of the immigrants and ethno-cultural groups however, there were harsh discriminations against the people

Growing up, I had the privilege of exploring different cultures in my community; one aspect - food. A love for going to a Chinese restaurant by my school and converse in Mandarin Chinese with the waitress, or go to the Mexican grills near my home and learn the cuisine in Spanish, spurred my passion for finding a connection to my own culture’s value of food. With so many wide ranges of cultural foods, I have begun to learn that it wasn't just one culture that loved food or good times, but a universal theme.

Canada is known globally for its multiculturalism and loves to boast about it, we even have a day dedicated to it. On Canada’s Multiculturalism Day in 2017 Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that “multiculturalism is at the heart of Canada’s heritage and identity - and as Canadians, we recognize that our differences make us strong” (Trudeau). In grade school Canadians are taught about the supposed marvels of multiculturalism and, in Alberta, an entire year of social studies is dedicated to it in middle school. Of course, as the creator of their policies, the Canadian government would have mostly good things to say and teach about its take on multiculturalism but, is it really all it’s cracked up to be? In thinking about Canadian multiculturalism, has it been the success that our government has led us to believe it is? The purpose of this paper is to argue that Canada’s multicultural policies and practices have not been a success and, in fact, solidify, entrench, and reproduce social inequalities. To build a case in favour of this argument, this paper will look at what multiculturalism means to Canada and how we should evaluate it in order to show that it has not been an unequivocal success.

It was a life changing experience to move to the United States from Armenia. The United States has a very rich diversity of cultures and therefore, there is diversity of cuisines. Although America’s population is massive, many people living in America are not from America; they are from other countries. As they move to America, they try to stay true to their culture and have a small community of their culture in the new environment. One of the most common ways to maintain one’s culture in America is through food and its practices in order to honor and remember where they came from. Another way of saying maintaining cultural food practices and sustaining tradition would be sustainability. Therefore, traditional food can represent a whole culture and a way to find out more about any culture is to taste their food. Tasting another culture’s

This paper will discuss the multifaceted relationships among food, and culture. I will be looking at the relationships people have with food, and explore how this relationship reveals information about them. Their food choices of individuals and groups, can reveal their ideals, likes and dislikes. Food choices tell the stories of where people have travelled and who they have met along the way.