Redick L T, Wood B
Child Welfare. 1982 Jun;61(6):365-73.
The process of assimilation is both painful and rewarding to the refugee and the people of the host country. Throughout the history of the United States, people have found creative ways to deal with cross-cultural differences. As illustrated in the composite case illustration, the resolutions involve overt adoption of the host culture's customs, acceptance of the refugee's cultural customs, compromise by both cultures, and peaceful coexistence of the two cultures. The broad issue is how a society responsibly assimilates groups of people with different cultures and customs in a way that does no condemn any culture and allows the refugees to become self-sufficient members of society. The struggles touched upon in this article do not stop after the first year of the refugee's resettlement. The process of assimilation of a group of people into mainstream society generally takes about three generations. For the refugees, it is a life-long struggle between the "old ways" and the "new ways" in their own lives, as well as in the lives of their children.
同化过程对难民和东道国人民来说既痛苦又有益。在美国历史上，人们找到了创造性的方法来应对跨文化差异。正如综合案例插图所示，解决方案包括公开采用东道国文化的习俗、接受难民的文化习俗、两种文化相互妥协以及两种文化和平共处。一个广泛的问题是，一个社会如何以一种不谴责任何文化并让难民成为社会自给自足成员的方式，负责任地同化具有不同文化和习俗的人群。本文中提到的挣扎在难民重新安置的第一年之后并不会停止。一群人融入主流社会的过程通常需要大约三代人的时间。对难民来说，这是他们自己以及子女生活中“旧方式”与“新方式”之间的终身斗争
