Twentieth International Conference on Diversity in Organizations, Communities & Nations

Abstract

In the last half-century, the Immigration Reform of 1965 has resulted in the biggest immigration in the United States history. With immigrants arriving from countries all over the world, many urban areas are witnessing unprecedented cultural diversity. This paper discusses the impact of demographic transformation in New York City where over forty percent of the population is from foreign-born immigrants and residents of many of its neighborhoods represent over one hundred nationalities. Drawing on my research on role of immigrants in rapidly changing neighborhood communities of the NYC Borough of Queens, considered one of the most culturally diverse counties nationwide, I raise the following points: a) The initial attempts to characterize these diverse populations as “multicultural” account neither for the cross-cultural interactions among these groups nor address the issues of inequality and social justice evidenced in many immigrant communities; b) In light of the intense cultural difference, are the traditional categories of race and ethnicity sufficient to explain complex and changing group identities of immigrants? How do we understand pan-ethnic identities such as Latinos and Asian Americans who comprise majority of recent immigrants? c) Is active engagement with culturally diverse immigrants leading to creation of a “new” civic pluralism where immigrants’ agency is recognized and they are not treated as passive receivers of linear and guaranteed assimilation? The paper includes illustrations from immigrant community experiences as well as references to relevant scholarship.