Salad bowl (was Re: The Finger (1947?))

[Paul McFedries]

The "salad bowl" metaphor is used to describe a multicultural society in
which each ethnic group maintains its own cultural identity rather than
being assimilated into a larger, common culture (the "melting pot"). The
underlying idea is that when you combine salad ingredients they retain their
"identity": the lettuce is still recognizable as lettuce, the carrots as
carrots, etc. It's a voguish metaphor right now, but LexisNexis has cites
back to 1975:

          Robert Rangel, director of bilingual programs in Los Angeles city
schools,
          described America today as a "salad bowl" rather than a melting
pot. "Ethnic
          pride is very strong," he said. "Today everyone needs to find a
place in the
          sun. Our country is strong because of the diversity it has."
          --U.S. News & World Report, July 7, 1975

Paul
http://www.mcfedries.com/
http://www.logophilia.com/


> > 2) common food metaphors, such as "melting pot," and "salad bowl" (does
> > anyone know where/when this originated?), and other common food-related
>
> "Melting pot" is a hot-metal metaphor, not a food metaphor.  I am not sure
> what you mean by a metaphorical "salad bowl."