Melting Pot..or Not?

I have often heard America described as a "melting pot". However, there has been a lot of criticism that describing the U.S. as a melting pot meant that everyone was supposed to fit under the American standard. In one of my other Health Science classes, we also discussed this topic and rather than calling the U.S. a "melting pot", we thought it was much more appropriate to call it a salad bowl. Unlike a melting pot society where it is assumed everyone will "melt" and blend into one, the salad bowl allows all the different cultures and people to co-exist under one society. Similar to Jackson's metaphor as the U.S. as a quilt, everyone can be their own unique individual self and each person will be accepted in society, regardless of their differences. In a salad bowl society that embraces the diverse characteristics, personalities and attributes that make our society so wonderful, people will not feel obligated to fit in with the dominant societal views.