I honestly don't care that much--with a caveat. We are a nation of immigrants. But we must be a nation built on that varied stock of people. Even Native Americans, really. And given we are all apparently descendants of the same basic stock, the Neanderthals might have a thing to say about the unfairness of how Native Americans were treated. I won't defend it other than to say that it was a common experience, and we are all descendants of the winners (or at least survivors) of past wars. I personally don't know any Carthaginian Americans.
So we've all come here. And as long as we all become Americans at heart, with a desire for freedom and progress for our children, it won't matter what color Americans are. We have changed a lot from 1776, but we are no less America now for that change. And if we need to limit the flow in for a while to help assimilation, I'm fine with that.
The idea that it is racist to control our borders or want those we let in to become Americans--and enact policies to encourage that--rather than bring their tribal fights from the Old World here is just bizarre to me. Our strength comes from creating Americans from people around the world. We aren't a country of blood and soil, but of a state of mind. Email me if you ever notice me going off on the evil British and pining for the peat bogs of my ancestral homeland in Ireland.
So with that long introduction, Lamb had a class show this week. The theme was "Coming to America."
Lamb's own class reflects the change in births already. Minorities are the majority. I don't care. I am mildly annoyed that the mention of Columbus has to be accompanied by air quotes around the word "discovered," but what else do you want to call the act of finding a vast land and people and returning to let Europe, Asia, and Africa know about it? Obviously, those who already lived here knew about the place. But they didn't know about the rest of the world. Had an Aztec ship pulled into Lisbon harbor, we could say it was the other way around. But I digress.
The point was that Lamb and her class had a show. They sang and danced and had speaking parts. Lamb was great.
The pride you have as a parent seeing your child up on the stage really does warp all senses, I'll admit. Good grief, I'm such a dad. But I'd have it no other way.
