Introduction
Introduction
Religious, Racial, and Ethnic Identities of the New Second Generation
This introductory chapter describes how racial minorities have emerged and constitute the largest share of Americans under 18 and of the children of immigrants—the new second generation. American cultural discourse has shifted from the religious triple melting pot to one that celebrates ethnic, religious, and racial identities. The members of this new and emerging diverse population are situated to combine their backgrounds in ways that their parents and earlier generations were not permitted to, lest they risk marginalization from mainstream public life. Also, despite its continuous role in American public life, the significance of institutionalized religion to the new second generation's private life has declined. American scholar Will Herberg calls this process the “secularization of religion,” in which members of the new second generation value an individualistic, therapeutic spirituality that mistrusts religious authority and instead embraces authenticity in being and relationships.
Keywords: U.S. immigrants, racial identities, diverse population, marginalization, American public life, institutionalized religion, secularization, Will Herberg
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