9781422283783

14 F I ND I NG COMMUN I T Y

A community can mean different things, but it is always more than just a random group of people. Those who are part of a particular community are connected to each other in some way—either because they live close together or because they share common interests or identities.

We are born into certain communities that can be very important to our sense of who we are as we grow up: our family, our ethnic or racial heritage, our religious tradition, our hometown, our nation. The traditions and values of these most basic communities shape our view of ourselves and the world. Throughout American history, ethnic and racial minority groups, especially those that have been the victims of prejudice and oppression, have formed particularly strong communities. Native Americans, African- Americans, Hispanics, Jews, and new immigrants (at various times com- prising the Irish, the Italians, and the Chinese, among others) have stuck

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