Diversity One of America's Greatest Assets

05 February 2008

This is an issue update from America.gov.

In February, America.gov is celebrating diversity in America. Throughout the next month, we’re featuring special online and multimedia presentations that explore how immigrants and cultures mix in the United States and create American diversity. Visit www.america.gov to see and hear Americans at work, at leisure and at worship. But first we’ll discuss American diversity in the past and present.

The candidacy of Senator Barack Obama for U.S. president is bringing a new energy to the U.S. political scene, according to many. His supporters say that with his message of hope, the Illinois Democratic senator connects to people of all different racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Many Americans are attracted to Obama’s message of bringing people together. Despite the fact that he is considered by many to be the first African-American with a real chance of winning the presidency, his candidacy is not driven by his race. Diversity is accepted as a vital strength in the United States -- whether related to religion, race, gender, or nationality -- and keeps the nation strong and renewed as global conditions change.

The story of the American people is a story of the world’s peoples. Throughout American history, hopeful immigrants have arrived to establish new lives. They came for many reasons. Some were fleeing oppressive regimes, seeking economic opportunity or simply pursuing personal dreams. Whatever the reason, each new arrival has made a contribution to the American mosaic.

American society is referred to as a “melting pot.” Traditional measures that identify a nation, such as race or religion, do not apply in the United States. There are so many races and religions practiced here that it is impossible to claim that any one is “American.” Instead, like the immigrants who have come over many years, American society is defined by an idea of hope and optimism.

Today, diversity is being realized as one of America’s greatest assets. Universities in the United States are striving to increase diversity. A recent survey shows strong growth in the enrollment of every minority group in U.S. graduate schools over the past decade. International student enrollment in America is also up. And as of 2006, almost 60 percent of U.S. graduate students were female.

Immigrants to the United States continue to find a land of opportunity both for themselves and for their children. The Economic Mobility Project, which profiles factors that make up the so-called American Dream, shows that the children of immigrants attain higher levels of education than their parents, and are even more likely to attain college degrees than the children of non-immigrants. Many experts contend that America is well placed to remain competitive in the world economy because it knows how to accept and integrate a diverse population.

For more on Diversity in America, visit our American Life section at www.america.gov