Yes to multiculturalism. No to Multiculturalism

If the title confuses you, let me try to explain. There is one form of multi-culturalism that I am all for. There is another form that I oppose. Today, our society is tying itself up in knots over this issue, and it is the Multiculturalists, the folks on the far left and in our universities who are doing the tying.

As someone who has lived in three different foreign countries (Germany, Italy and Thailand)for a total of 11 years, who has learned several languages, visited over 50 other countries and is married to a Mexican immigrant, I consider myself to be a very multicultural person. It is not a question of being "tolerant", rather I genuinely like and am attracted to numerous different cultures. My wife and I have a circle of friends that probably consists of more than 50% of people from other countries. One of the great things about living in Southern California is the variety of nationalities, foods and languages.

In spite of all that, I remain firmly committed to the old concept that those who immigrate to America should assimilate into our culture and accept our values and traditions. If they don't, their children and grandchildren traditionally do.

I also think that, instead of focusing on our differences, we should focus on what binds us together as Americans-common values, freedoms and language (English).

Yet, there has been a movement in this country for the past couple of generations to move away from the old melting Pot concept and "celebrate our diversity". It is largely championed by the those on the far left-especially in our universities. It is called Multiculturalism. Ostensibly developed to combat racism and to get us all to love each other, it has accomplished neither. Instead, Multiculturalism has contributed only towards a form of Balkanization of Americans into competing tribes; whites, blacks, Hispanics, Asian-Americans, Native Americans and Arab-Americans, many of whom are Muslim-now a distinct minority group. So now we have observances like Black History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, Asian-Pacific Islander Month and on and on. Indeed, the concept of Multiculturalism has become an industry in itself, with Diversity Consultants, Diversity Seminars and what have you.

Further, where once integration was the goal we strove to achieve after coming out of the darkness of enforced/de facto segregation, now it seems that in some quarters, integration is an outmoded concept. Go onto any university campus, and you will see Black Student Organizations, Mecha (for Mexican-American students, Muslim Student Unions and so on. The result is that Americans-especially young Americans are withdrawing into their own tribes. Is that a worthwhile goal? Not in my view. Yet, it is the goal and design of many on the far left. Why?

To me, the far left in America has a goal to tear this country down and rebuild it in their own image. What better way than to divide Americans-especially when they are young. Make sure that everyone identifies first and foremost with their "Group". Tell them they are victims in a white racist country that will never let them succeed no matter how hard they try. When people come along who prove that idea wrong, (Condoleeza Rice, Clarence Thomas, Ward Connolly for example,) they are castigated as sell-outs.

In addition, the emphasis on Multiculturalism has not done much to bring minority groups together. In places like Los Angeles, black and Hispanic gangs conduct armed warfare on the city streets, while their counterparts in prison are also killing and maiming each other. Mention Multiculturalism to them and they will laugh in your face.

It is especially ironic that, at a point in our history when we face a grave threat in the form of international Islamic terrorism, we would want to be divided. More than ever, we need to come together as Americans under a common threat. There are many aspects of our identity that we share as Americans. We cannot afford to forget about them. The Multiculturalists can talk all they want about "celebrating diversity". The fact is that if we really consider ourselves as part of different tribes-and competing ones at that- we will act like it. Do we really want to go in the direction of places like Rwanda, Kenya or Sudan? Oh, but that could never happen here, you say. I revert your attention back to the mean streets of LA and our prisons.

Ironically, today we see a major political party in America, one that boasts of being the party of inclusion and diversity, on the verge of a rupture over race and gender-all because their two remaining candidates consist of a white woman and a black man (Clinton-Obama). Not surprisingly, but sadly, their support-to a large extent-is breaking down along racial and gender lines, while most Hispanic Democrats are going to Clinton.

It may be naive to say so, but our ultimate goal has to be to achieve a common identity as Americans, drop the hyphens from our consciousness and our lexicon, and stand together as one people. That is not to say that we cannot respect the ethnic differences or old mother country heritage. However, if we are to survive as a people and a great nation, then those differences have to recede into the background.

The term multiculturalism is actually not a bad word in of itself. When I look at my own life (as a white male), multiculturalism has been and still is a central point of my being.

I just don't spell it with a capital "M".