Cultural Diversity in the Neighborhood - 1951 Words

Marco Navarro Dr. Benjamin Looker Urban Crisis ASTD 322 February 23, 2009 Cultural Diversity within the Neighborhood Sitting in a dark theatre, an audience begins to rustle in their seats with excitement, anxiously awaiting the start of the show. The lights dim and the anticipation are diminished as the lights come up, the set of a street side unveils, and the beat begins. In one instant, the audience is transported from a simple theatre to the lively street-side of the neighborhood of Washington Heights, New York. This production is the 2008 Tony-winning â€Å"Best Musical† In the Heights. Written and composed by Lin Manuel Miranda, the show combines hip-hop and rap music with a variety of dancing styles to portray the life in the†¦show more content†¦In In the Heights, Usnavi celebrates his migrancy by proudly stating that he comes â€Å"from the greatest little place in the Caribbean, Dominican Republic† (Miranda). Usnavi takes pride for his country and flaunts to the audience about his heritage. In the past, this pride of t he native land never would have occurred for those who boasted about being immigrants were often profiled and treated differently. This change is essential in understanding how immigrants are able to more easily accept American culture by allowing a piece of their own culture stay within them which helps identify the feeling of community within the neighborhood better. In Susan Dicker’s article about the transitional community within the Dominican culture in Washington Heights, Dicker argues that complete assimilation for all immigrants into American culture is highly unlikely which causes cultural diversity. Immigrants, who move to a different place with a pre-established sense of culture and identity, maintain an attitude to refute the new culture in order to maintain theirs (Dicker 13). People do not like to fully submit themselves to assimilation because in order to do so, they must give up their own culture and accept another that is not truly theirs. The cultural ti es experienced at an early age are never easily lost and therefore remain within the population. Another reason why assimilation does not occur is that immigrants usually must learn a new language, which is difficultShow MoreRelatedCommunity Nursing 405 Windshield Survey Essay example995 Words   |  4 Pagesare many changes that I have observed in my neighborhood since living here for 21 years. There has been a recent migration of homeowners moving out of the neighborhoods. The home owners are either renting out their homes, to a new influx of section 8 tenants or they have chosen to walk away from their homes leaving many in the area to go into foreclosure. 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Communities and housing involves the gathering of people and groups therefore we should look at the importance of diversity in this area. While some families of higher socioeconomic class believe that living amongRead MoreReport on Cultural Diversity Essay1630 Words   |  7 PagesPhoenix Cultural Diversity and Special Populations BSHS 422 October 12, 2009 According to Kiosk (2006), â€Å"Culture is an important guiding force in individuals life and it shapes not only their perceptions, but their relationships with people and the world around them. Culture, in some ways, defines and organizes reality for people† (Kiosk,  2006). â€Å"An individual’s lifestyle, guiding beliefs and basic assumptions about life are also affected by culture† (Kiosk,  2006). Cultural diversityRead MoreSocial Disorganization And The Impact On Crime Essay1507 Words   |  7 Pagesinclude neighborhood sweeps both cleaning up and felon sweeps, community programs, and focusing more on those that do not have a record and those that already do. Social disorganization is the idea that place matters when analyzing a neighborhood’s ecological characteristics. This means where a person lives is a substantial factor that shapes the likelihood of someone becoming involved in illegal activities. For example, this theory suggests, youths living in disadvantaged neighborhoods will beRead MoreThe Social Of Crime And Criminal Behavior882 Words   |  4 Pages The influence that certain neighborhoods or environments have on crime has been observed and studied throughout the last two centuries. Many theories, such as the social disintegration theory, have been hypothesized to explain the effects of certain neighborhoods on crime. 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