Is Cultural Pluralism a Viable and Valid Way to Deal with Diversity in Research Paper

Is Cultural Pluralism a Viable and Valid Way to Deal with Diversity in the United States - Research Paper Example The present research has identified that the colonists were unified in their opposition to taxation without representation and other impositions that they felt membership in the British Empire was imposing on them. However, beyond that shared belief there was already a great deal of diversity in the United States. First, there were the indigenous peoples and the African-American population. Both of these groups were excluded from participating in the governance of the new nation (as were women). This alone is evidence of diversity. On another level, even the European immigrants newly arrived in North America brought with them diverse cultures. Many were religious dissenters such as William Penn and the Quakers that founded Pennsylvania and the Puritans that had founded the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Manhattan had been founded by the Dutch and there was still a large number of people of Dutch heritage who spoke Dutch in the area at the time of the Revolution. The Constitution itse lf also speaks to the diversity within the United States over 200 hundred years ago. In light of the diversity of the newly formed United States, the Constitution specifically ruled out the establishment of a state, official religion and guaranteed freedom of religion. The first phrase in the First Amendment states, â€Å"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.† Religious diversity was an aspect of American national identity from the birth of the United States. The Constitution also recognizes that the former colonies, now states, are each unique.