Ethnic Foods

Ethnicity and ethnic food in America predate Columbus but became more prominent as diverse European powers colonized what became the United States, often drawing on minorities and subject peoples to fill a need for labor. After the Revolutionary War the United States increasingly became a nation of immigrants. The prevailing view has gone back and forth many times between accepting diversity in people and foods and requiring that individuals conform to a simplified national identity and a bland, non-diversified diet. The meaning of ethnicity and the nature of ethnic food in America have changed many times, but the overall direction has been toward increased acceptance of diversity and a wide menu across the United States.