Blame the Immigrants

I received a forwarded email from a friend the other day that pissed me off. Part of the email blamed immigrants for diluting the US identity. What, are we not a mixing pot or tossed salad anymore? Yes, many immigrants who come to the US have strong cultural identities and strong religious belief systems and will never conform to the "US identity". However, many immigrants to this country quickly become flag waving patriots. I regularly hear about foreign born men and women who enter the military to give something to this country in return for the freedoms he or she has received. So much of American culture has been processed, packaged, and trademarked, that our cultural identities have been lost to corporatization, not immigration. We do have holidays, such as Thanksgiving and Independence Day, that are tuly American. But, many of our traditions were gained from other countries, cultures, and religion. Now, I am not trying to say that immigrants are better than US citizens or vice versa. I just don't think that you can put the blame with immigrants. It is an ignorant, unsubstatiated argument.

The email also went off on how we are a Christian nation and that people are afraid to celebrate religion because they are afraid of offending others. It stated that "In God We Trust" is the US motto and that if God offends you, you should move to another country. Actually, the original motto of the United States was secular. "E Pluribus Unum" is Latin for "One from many" or "One from many parts." It refers to the welding of a single federal state from a group of individual political units -- originally colonies and now states. The Great Seal of the United States features an eagle with a heart-shaped shield, holding arrows and an olive branch in its claws. The motto "E Pluribus Unum" appears on a scroll held in its beak. It wasn't until 1864 that Congress passed legislation putting the phrase "In God We Trust" on select coins. Source.

The Bill of Rights starts out with Amendment 1, which begins with "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;" As you can clearly read, the founders of this great country did not intend for a national religion, as stated in the establishment clause. Also, they did not intend for anyone to be persecuted for their religious beliefs, as stated in the free exercise clause. The freedom of religion that we have in this country actually helped me to explore my own spirituality, and without it, I don't feel that I would be where I am now. If a religion was imposed on me, I would push against it and likely reject it.

So next time you receive one of these emails, think about what they are saying before blindly agreeing with it and forwarding it on to others. When it comes right down to it, they are often un-American. BTW, in case you didn't know, my parents are immigrants to this country. My parents vote, go to church, pay taxes, and celebrate Independence Day. I would say that they are better "Americans" than most. But then again, my parents are white, educated, middle class, european immigrants. This email did have some racist undertones.