It is quite difficult nowadays for anyone to accurately provide a full description of the ethnic or even racial composition of America due to the complexities associated with it. From the onset, America was a multicultural and multiethnic society with different ethnic groups staying together. However, the indigenous people of America especially North America, were replaced and absorbed by Europeans who immigrated into America as settlers.
The Europeans imported Africans mostly from the Caribbean and West Africa who also helped in the dilution of the ethnical composition of America. As a result of immigration of new races into America, mixed races soon emerged because of intermarriages, consensual liaisons and sexual exploitation especially of black women by their white masters. It should be noted that the immigration history has highly influenced the ethnical and racial composition of America.
A century ago, people from southern and Eastern Europe migrated in large numbers into America adding to the diversity of racial composition in America. However, the recent immigrants from Asia and Latin America have changed the aspect of cultural and phenotypic diversity. On the same note, the distinction between various racial and ethnic groups is becoming more and more unclear due to increased intermarriages and the increasing number of people with mixed ancestry.
Consequently, the significance that race and ethnicity had in the American society is declining since people are becoming less concerned with the ethnical or racial background of others. On the same note, it has been noted that people from mixed ancestry identify themselves as natives of either race depending on the prevailing circumstances. However, outside America every person is simply American.
Recent studies show that there is a possibility of different racial divisions emerging because of the differentiation that is practiced nowadays. Arguably, American society has been largely categorized into brown and black people who are disadvantaged and other groups of immigrants who are allowed to integrate with the white majority.
This type of categorization is expected to lead to emergency of conflicts especially because immigration is still occurring in large numbers. As a matter of fact, with the recent rate of immigration, it has been projected that non-Hispanic whites will no longer be the majority by the end of the century.
In the 19th century, there was an influx of people from Europe and Asia into America which made the race composition issue very complex to date. Apart from increased immigration, rate of intermarriages between different races has exploded in recent years thus further complicating the race and ethnical aspect in American society.
It has been argued that if the trend persists, then approximately a quarter of African Americans, Asian Americans and as much as a half of Hispanic Americans will in one way or the other have a mixed ancestry history.
Reporting about the origin of people is becoming a hard nut to crack given that people are either unwilling or unable to accurately declare their ancestry. Many people of mixed ancestry will want to be identified as Native Americans while others believe that there exists a superior race and will thus choose it when asked about their origin.
There has been decreased discrimination on grounds of one’s race or ethnical background mostly due to immigration that has led to increased diversity. In addition, increased rates of mixing among members of different races or ethnical groups have increased people’s knowledge about multicultural ancestry.
Subsequently, the ideologies and boundaries of racial and ethnic composition will change in the years to come. It is important to note that immigration policies instituted by the government are less likely to influence people’s ideas about racial and ethnic boundaries.