Snapshot USA.pdf

SOCIETY & VALUES

The Bureau of International Information Programs of

the U.S. Department of State publishes ive

electronic journals under the eJournal USA

logo —Economic Perspectives, Global Issues,

Issues of Democracy, Foreign Policy Agenda, and

Society & Values —that examine major issues facing the

United States and the international community, as well as

U.S. society, values, thought, and institutions.

Senior Editor George Clack

Contributing Editors Mark A. Betka

Paul Malamud

Chandley McDonald

Mildred Neely

Robin Yeager

Reference Specialists Mary Ann Gamble

Anita N. Green

One new journal is published monthly in English and

followed by versions in French, Portuguese, Russian,

and Spanish. Selected editions also appear in Arabic

and Chinese. Each journal is catalogued by volume (the

number of years in publication) and number (the number

of issues that appear during the year).

Martin Manning

Kathy Spiegel

Graphic Design

Tim Brown

Photo Researcher

Ann Monroe Jacobs

Opinions expressed in the journals do not necessarily

relect the views or policies of the U.S. government. The

U.S. Department of State assumes no responsibility for

the content and continued accessibility of Internet sites

to which the journals link; such responsibility resides

solely with the publishers of those sites. Journal articles,

photographs, and illustrations may be reproduced and

translated outside the United States unless they carry

explicit copyright restrictions, in which case permission

must be sought from the copyright holders noted in the

journal.

Publisher Judith S. Siegel

Executive Editor Richard W. Huckaby

Production Manager Christian Larson

Assistant Production Manager Chloe D. Ellis

Editorial Board

Alexander C. Feldman

Jeremy F. Curtin

Kathleen R. Davis

Kara Galles

The Bureau of International Information Programs

maintains current and back issues in several electronic

formats, as well as a list of upcoming journals, at http:

//usinfo.state.gov/pub/ejournalusa.html. Comments are

welcome at your local U.S. Embassy or at the editorial

ofices:

Cover: Courtesy of Comstock Images: Jupiter Images

Editor, eJournal USA

IIP/T/CP

U.S. Department of State

301 4th Street SW

Washington, DC 20547

United States of America

E-mail: iiptcp@state.gov

S OCIETY & V ALUES / J UNE 2006

eJ OURNAL USA

About This Issue

search engine and 3,370,000,000 listings come

up on the computer screen. Clearly, there is no

shortage of published content about this country. As we

researched this issue of eJournal USA , however, we realized

that a new publication, tailored to the current generation

of young people from outside the United States, could ill

a niche. Our title for this issue, “Snapshot USA,” conveys

this approach. We offer some

fundamental facts and build

on these to describe a little of

how Americans think about

their country and the world, to

provide a picture of who we are

now.

Our goal is for international

readers to become aware not

just that California is the most

populous state but also that U.S.

democracy runs on a system of

checks and balances, that the

feelings young Americans have

as they venture into adulthood

may be similar to the readers’

own, and much more. In

short, we do not see this issue

as an academic tome but as an

intriguing slice of America at a

moment in time, a word-and-

picture collage for June of 2006.

We open with a collection

of short essays called “My

America.” We asked ive young

writers to tell what they’d like

people abroad to know about this country—aspects of

America that, in the daily rush of headlines around the

world, may have been overlooked. Their thoughts make

for some surprising reading.

In “Some Things That Make Us American,”

Northwestern University political scientist Kenneth Janda

pinpoints pluralism as one key to American democracy. A

scholar of international relations from American University

in Washington, DC, Gary Weaver, explains further that

the common metaphor of America as a melting pot where

different ethnic groups lose their identities is not accurate.

He prefers the symbol of a mosaic or a tapestry—a

society that comprises a larger unity while at the same

time valuing its distinct parts. We close this section with

portraits of ive contemporary Americans whose lives

seem to embody some of the classic values associated

with this country—self-

reliance, entrepreneurship,

philanthropy, second chances,

and pursuing one’s dream.

In “American Icons,”

we take a look at 32

statesmen, civil rights leaders,

scientists, entrepreneurs,

athletes, and entertainers

whose achievements have

also touched many around

the world. To understand

any nation, you need to

understand something of

its past, so we also include a

listing of milestone events in

U.S. history.

We follow with a brief

tour of the country’s regions.

This seems appropriate because

one of the earliest and most

enduring of American dreams

has been about the vast land

itself. Walt Whitman expressed

the thought in his 1855 preface

to his poetry collection, Leaves

of Grass . The true poet of America, Whitman wrote,

“incarnates its geography and natural life and rivers and

lakes. … When the long Atlantic coast stretches longer

and the Paciic coast stretches longer … He spans between

them also from east to west and relects what is between

them.” 

The Statue of Liberty

The Editors

eJ OURNAL USA

S OCIETY & V ALUES / J UNE 2006

T ype the phrase “United States” into the Google

eJ OURNAL USA

SNAPSHOT USA 2006

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE / JUNE 2006 / VOLUME 11 / NUMBER 2

http://usinfo.state.gov/pub/ejournalusa.html

Table of Contents

M Y A MERICA

Five young Americans write about what they want

international readers to know about the United

States.

S OME T HINGS T HAT M AKE U S A MERICAN

Pluralism and Democracy

K ENNETH J ANDA , P ROFESSOR OF P OLITICAL S CIENCE

AT N ORTHWESTERN U NIVERSITY IN C HICAGO ,

I LLINOIS

A leading scholar explains how pluralism is one key

to American democracy.

Coloring Outside the Lines

Jacqueline Morais Easley describes the diversity of

American families.

Sidebar: U.S.A. FAQs

An Airman’s Story

Korey London, an ex-serviceman, talks about being a

black American and defending his country.

The American Cultural Tapestry

G ARY W EAVER , P ROFESSOR AT THE S CHOOL OF

I NTERNATIONAL S ERVICE AT A MERICAN U NIVERSITY

IN W ASHINGTON , DC

A well-known expert describes some aspects of

American culture and how various ethnic groups

work together in U.S. society.

The City and the Dream

Ashley Moore, a recent college graduate, describes

her perception of the American dream.

The New World

Eboo Patel, executive director of the Interfaith Youth

Core in Chicago, provides insight into life as an

American Muslim.

Five With Drive

Here are proiles of ive contemporary Americans

who embody some of the classic American values.

The Meaning of America

Kelly McWilliams, a rising college freshman and

published novelist, explains her vision of the United

States.

Sidebar: U.S.A. QuickFacts

Sidebar : The American People by the Numbers

G LOBAL I SSUES / M ARCH 2006

eJ OURNAL USA

F AMOUS F ACES AND P LACES

American Icons

A compilation of photographs and information

about 32 statesmen, civil rights leaders, scientists,

entrepreneurs, athletes, and entertainers whose

achievements merit the title “icon.”

O NLINE V IDEO

A Video Tour of the Regions of

the United States

Sidebar: Milestones of U.S. History

A Brief Tour of the United States

There are 50 states in the U.S.A., each with its own

distinct culture. Here, we take a look at America

region by region.

http://www.usinfo.state.gov/journals/itsv/0606/ijse/

ijse0606.htm

Sidebar: What Immigrants Say About the United

States

Sidebar: American Thinkers on Values

Internet Resources

Selected Web sites about the United States.

eJ OURNAL USA

S OCIETY & V ALUES / J UNE 2006

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