Unity

               In The Power of One, I saw racism as a main theme. Peekay experiences racism firsthand, because he is a rooinek, when he is bullied by the Boer children at the boarding school. Racism is later displayed in the way that Borman treats Geel Piet, eventually murdering him. I don't wan't to discuss the fact that racism is wrong and sickening, because it is. What I want to point out is how racism is dealt with to create unity, and how unity is sometimes being interpreted incorrectly today.
              In The Power of One the native African tribes are discriminated against because they are different culturally, and mainly because they have a different skin color. Peekay does not agree with the racism, and he encourages the inmates to be proud of their heritage and culture. When all of the inmates sing the song that Doc composed, each tribe is highlighted, and is noticably different. They all embraced their difference and unified to create beautiful music.
             The United States has become a magnet for people from other countries. America has become a cultural mosaic, and a mosaic is a compilation of different pieces. That is what I love about America. I love being able to see so many different cultures around me. A comment that I hear a lot is, "We all live in America, so that is what we all are: Americans." While this is partially true, many people often interperate this by thinking that everyone should throw away their cultural roots for a new "American mask". This mindset completely shatters the idea of a cultural mosaic. It would be like cutting up a bunch of pieces of red paper, and then just gluing them back down all together. We need to have the Peekay mindset that created the amazing scene at the jail. Every single group of people that make up our nation is a piece of artwork that contributes to one unified masterpiece.