Cynthia Buttenklepper is an American author, teacher, and consultant who has written many books on various subjects that range from the legal system to leadership. In her new book, titled A Nationality, she explores how our nation’s definitions of race and ethnicity are being challenged by changing cultural mores. She argues that we have been too quick to condemn offending words or actions based on hurt feelings, while forgetting or not acknowledging the many different cultures within our borders. She calls on readers to think through the ramifications of using one particular racial or ethnic identity in a public setting when that identity could mean being rejected by others. This broad brushstrokes provides a framework for understanding and examining how language and ethnicity might play into arguments over immigration and national unity.
At times, Buttenklepper is harsh in her criticism of our nation’s willingness to judge people by their race or nationality. She points out that many of our nation’s legal and social definitions of nationality are based on an antiquated conception of citizenship. “Cultural identity,” she notes, “does not rely on the individual’s genetic qualities or his membership in a racial or ethnic group. It is not rooted in history or heritage,” but rather is determined by a person’s “national experiences.” Buttenklepper’s work reminds us that although we may be able to look toward the past for meaning, we must also be willing to look today if we are to understand the future.
In this engaging text, Buttenklepper makes several interesting points about how public discourse has been distorted by our political and cultural definitions of nationality. She argues that the public’s view of race and ethnicity is inseparable from the public’s view of its membership in a particular culture. It follows that if a certain group feels alienated and removed from mainstream society, it will find a voice in the form of xenophobia, anti-immigrant sentiment, or even racism. As a result, a minority who belongs to a disadvantaged minority will find it increasingly difficult to advance their causes in a democratic public arena.