Reflection: A Tale of Two Identities

Speaking with the French diplomat was a very interesting way to learn, first-hand, the relationship between France, the US, and the rest of the world. However, his outlining of the problems that are beginning to challenge the "identity" of France were surprising, and also a little alarming. Integration seemed to be his key hurdle to removing the threat French identity, saying that the French people and government refrain from speaking about minorities or other ethnic communities in France, but instead do it through the individual. I feel that, given the (I don't want to say it, but it applies) radical reforms the Sarkozy government has sought to implement, or has implemented, all in the name of preserving this intangible "identity," there is little base in the argument that the French government does not want to label ethnic minorities as a whole instead of on a case-by-case basis. He also went on to explain that the burqa ban, which has overwhelmingly passed in both houses of the French parliament, is not infringing on religious liberty; rather, it is helping Islamic women integrate into French society. For a republic that has prided itself in its three sayings: "Liberte´, Egalite´, and Fraternite´," I feel that they are not living up to the standards of the second entry in their motto. Is a society integrated, and therefore, one would hope, equal, when one group of people has a freedom of religion and another does not? The diplomat also said that, because of elevated interdependence of European neighbors in the continent where many states make up the interconnected EU, being European is increasingly becoming more important than being French to those living in France. One would hope that such a theory would help erode "identity" issues within states, and decrease the challenges of immigration, particularly from the Islamic world. However, with similar "identity" referenda passing overwhelmingly by citizens in Switzerland, Belgium, even Sweden, one wonders if "becoming European" really would be all that much better, and gives an ominous warning to the United States for the present and future in a time when immigration reform has become a major issue on Capitol Hill.

In discussing immigration and integration, it's hard to leave out the US in this dilemma. On Friday we watched a few videos which, I feel, inaccurately depict the United States as a nation that has historically welcomed immigrants. In the videos supposedly "welcoming" newcoming foreigners to the United States, we see a nation that has nothing but cowboys, rolling hills and countrysides, and groups separated into their respective races. We didn't see interracial couples, or white and black people interacting with one another, we just see the "traditional" things about the US. It made me wonder, given all of the frankly racist policies that have gone into effect in Europe, as well as the fact that the video depicted a European resident (I think he was from France) entering through customs, is US customs supposed to be aiming toward potential European immigrants with these videos? I'm not a conspiracist or anything, but it was just a little odd. The video of the lunatic Republican (I realize that is redundant) running for some inconsequential (at least when it comes to immigration) position in Alabama also didn't give the US a very good name when it comes to welcoming all. It actually gives a foreigner looking in a very polarized outlook of the US. My dad is an immigrant from Sicily, and going to high school in Elizabeth, NJ, which is a very diverse city, he said that the schools seemed to be socially segregated. When I went with him to his high school reunion, simply believing he was hyperbolizing one his stories as always, I was amazed. The Italian kids (now men and women) would sit with the other Italians, the caucasian people with the other caucasian people, the hispanic people with the other hispanic people, and so on, with almost no interaction between any of the ethnic groups. It goes to show that the US is not alone in having an "identity" issue as in France. The problem is, our identity is so polarized, however more equal and religiously tolerant than France or other nations in Europe, whereas those nations are quick in instilling an "identity" agenda upon its minorities. The question remains, though: will our polarization mean that are we next up to the plate?