Eth 125 Final Project

William Rigney

ETH 125

8/29/2013

Final Project

Information about diversity in the United States that has helped me to better understand and relate to others in the past and today would be the events of 9/11. While I was serving in the Navy, we were assigned to escort and protect oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, ensuring safe passage from attacks by Iraqi forces. At the time, I did not look at Saddam Hussein as a radical Muslim, just as a dictator who was dead set on ruling his people and making them submit. After the attacks on the Twin Towers, I joined with other Americans, calling for a war on terrorism and the Muslims. I researched the Koran to see what all the hoopla was about and discovered that there are two acceptable versions, one that calls for a Jihad (holy war), and one that teaches peace among all people. I found that only a handful of Muslims are radical and believe in the Holy War, and that most want to live in peace with others. By learning this about the Muslims, I also learned that many whites in America are still biased toward other races and ethnicities. While some embrace the diversity on our country, there are still those that look down unapprovingly at other races. While I am proud of who I am, and my race, there are those that still embarrass me.

According to projections by the U.S. Census Bureau, non-Hispanic whites could be a minority by 2043, due in part to the doubling of Hispanic and Asian populations. Races that are considered minorities today comprise 37 percent of the population, by 2060, it is projected to be 57 percent. Not only will our population be more diverse, it will be older, as the bureau predicts that the elderly population will also double in that time (Cline, 2012). I feel that this is due in part that people are concerning themselves more with their health and living longer than ever before, and that infant mortality rates are dropping.

The United States is going through a demographic change, and there...