merican culture is an amalgam of many different traditions and has proven over time to be remarkably capable of absorbing diversity and integrating diverse traditions into a uniquely American sociological entity (Nelli, 1983; Takaki, 1993).
Diner (2006) suggests that one of the realities of America is that immigrant and ethnic communities have never existed as homogenous enclaves with everyone in them subscribing to a particular vision promoted by leaders as to how such enclaves should function and relate to America in terms of both political and cultural issues. Ethnic communities have been a key feature of American society virtually from the beginning of the country. The Irish, Italians, Eastern Europeans, Latin Americans, Catholics, Jews, and Muslims, to name only a few of the immigrant groups who have migrated to the United States over time, have created flourishing communities that were supportive of their members and do so up to the present day (Diner, 2006).
Many texts have been written describing the immigrant experience of many groups, including Gjerde's (1985) analysis of Norwegian agrarian peasants who migrated to the United States and Diner's (1983) examination of the experiences of Irish women who chose life in America as a means of improving their own socioeconomic status. These texts strongly support the assertion that for the vast majority of immigrants the immigration experience is stressful in part because of cultural differences or linguistic deficits, but also because many migrants have limited educational or work related skills and find it difficult to obtain well-paying positions or achieve social mobility in the first generation.
Certainly there are exceptions to this. Takaki (1993) states that for better educated immigrants, the migratory experience is less difficult. Nelli (1983) asserts that among many Italian-Americans, community support provided new avenues for upward mobility. In the c...