The debate

While reading X-Men as J Men I found a particular sentence to be provoking.  "The continuing debate over whether the United States should promote ethnic, racial, and religious equality and diversity or whether it should become a more homogenous and less cultural society." (Pg 1).  I find it very interesting that the article is dated in 2003, so we are still asking this question? Do we really have a choice?
Consider the current debate over immigration but also consider how most of us came to be Americans...the reality is most of us would not be here were it not for immigration and Ellis Island (and even others Angel Island).  We are currently such a diverse melting pot that it seems the question is nearly irrelevant, we are past this point...aren't we?
I don't think that we could ever be homogenous and/or less cultural as a whole.  Even those of us stubborn to change and set in our ways have learned to coexist with different cultures.  I also don't think that we would be quite the same if our experiences with immigration changed.  On that note consider the equality portion of the quote.  I suppose we are more equal than we have ever been however when it comes to religion, equality and the freedom to practice we are still waging wars and finding ourselves intolerant.  We still have issues with diversity, ethnicity, and race though I would not go so far as to say that we have a true choice to be less cultural or more homogenous.
I am interested to hear what you guys think about this.  I could go on forever about this one point.  I think though there is essentially a contradiction.  In fact I believe that we are so united by our differences, that once were (i.e. if we were not immigrants from different lands we wouldn't collectively be Americans), that we couldn't be homogenous.  I know that last sentence sounds strange but think about it...we were once from many different lands to settle at one (land) and become Americans, we are all united by that factor however we are still (even generations removed) Irish, European, African, Asian, etc...  So, are we not both different and yet the same?