Roberto Jara,
Alto, MI.
It drives me nuts when people say, “Let’s all be color blind, forget our cultures of origin and just be ‘American,’ instead of ‘Latin-American,’ ‘Asian-American,’ etc. I can be American and preserve by culture of origin! Those of us who come from cultures other than the dominant Northern European Culture, have something to contribute to North America as our country evolves. Life would be boring without Chinese food, Salsa music, etc. I’m proud to be Mexican-American. My suspicious side suspects that when people say, “Let’s just all be American,” that they just want me to forget my culture and be absorbed into their dominant Northern European culture and story. The story needs to grow! My ancestors didn’t come across on the Mayflower, they waded across the river and I am not ashamed. I’m proud of what they have done to make this country better by not being absorbed into a melting pot, but making a wonderful stir-fry of people from all kinds of beautiful cultures living side by side and creating a whole better than the sum of the parts!
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