Originally Posted by KatzPajamas

My grandmother arrived in America as a toddler. She and her parents taught us that America is a melting pot! They celebrated the fact that they could come here and start a new life and live as richly or poorly as they wanted, dependant on the amount of work they put into it. Americans ARE Americans by the melting pot definition. Africans were brought here against their will but many Americans died to release them from the bonds of slavery and we continue to make ammends via affirmative action and welfare. (I personally could not and never have bought or sold another person) If a person feels the need to continue to identify with the land from which they came instead of embracing their American identity, they are free to return to the place that holds their allegiance.