it isn't anti immigration, it qualifies what the issue should be really about:
>>Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange
>>County Register:
>>
>>Dear Editor:
>>
>>So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made
>>up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the
>>Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated
>>the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of
>>entry.
>>
>>Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr.
>>Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of
>>immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of
>>Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and
>>stand in a long line in New York and be
>>documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the
>>ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new
>>country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule
>>in their new American households and some even changed their names to
>>blend in with their new home.
>>
>>They had waved go good bye to their birth place to give their children a
>>new life and did everything in their power to help their children
>>assimilate into one culture.
>>
>>Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to
>>protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had
>>brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their
>>children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along
>>side men whose parents had come straight over from
>>Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st generation Americans
>>ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They
>>were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They
>>were defending the United States of America as one people. When we
>>liberated France, no one in those villages were looking for the
>>French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people
>>of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one
>>country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking
>>up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It
>>would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to
>>be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They
>>stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
>>
>>And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same
>>rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a
>>different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a
>>guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not
>>what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who
>>landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for
>>all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to
>>create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a
>>better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an
>>example by those waving foreign country flags.
>>
>>And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty, it
>>happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration
>>bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just
>>yet.
>>
>>(signed) Rosemary LaBonte
>>
>>P. S. Pass this on to everyone you know!!! KEEP THIS LETTER MOVING!!
>>I hope this letter gets read by millions of people all across the nation.
2006-10-01
16:17:24
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3 answers
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asked by
rinehartstacy
2