October 26, 2006
This is another email letter that you never really know the source but interesting none the less.
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.
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  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 o ff 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 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.
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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 disg race 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!!
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