Germany is slowly transforming into an immigration country dealing.
To learn more about the way the multi-cultural city of New York is
dealing with its diversity, Dr. Dieter Wiefelspütz, Member of
the German Bundestag and expert in domestic politics and immigrant
affairs, visited New York City for a four day trip from June 1-4.
On Wednesday, June 4, 2008 Dr. Wiefelspütz and representatives
of Jewish Organizations which deal with immigration issues followed
Consul General Dr. Hans-Jürgen Heimsoeth’s invitation
to discuss different approaches of successful integration during
a lunch at his residence.
Moderated by the Executive Vice President of the Jewish Community
Relations Council, Michael Miller, the participants shared their
knowledge and experiences about the integration of Jewish immigrants
in the New Yorker Jewish community and American society. The Jewish
Community has faced a large but decreasing numbers of Russian-speaking
immigrants.
The participants concluded that having an immigrant identity as
well as an American is not contradictory. Quite the opposite is
true: Having different cultural and traditional backgrounds can
absolutely be part of the multicultural and multiethnic American
society and identity. All participants see the necessity to enhance
the inter-religious dialogue especially between Jewish and Muslim
communities.
Dr. Heimsoeth and Dr. Wiefelspütz were impressed by the large
number and the diversity of American-Jewish organizations dealing
with immigration issues and their expertise. Both emphasized that
“America has always been a destination for immigrants since
its foundation, so Germany can learn a lot from the American practice”.
Article by Patrick Gräf
June 6, 2008
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