American Spirit Definition

What is an American? What defines someone’s right to be an American? Everyone’s ideas will differ, their own personal experiences in this land define them. Some may say an American is defined by birthright, born and raised under the star spangled banner. Some may say an American is whoever wishes to be one, someone who truly adores this country and wishes to reside here despite their place of origin or their set of cultures and beliefs. I believe that an American is a mixture of the two, because a melting pot always needs different ingredients in order to make it work. The concept of freedom fuels an American’s spirit, whether they come from an ocean away or a mile. That drive for independence is what calls thousands to establish their roots …show more content…
Even today, there is scarcely a person who can’t trace their immediate ancestry back to another country. Yet, that doesn’t matter when we define Americans. Someone who is willing to go through the challenge of hard work it takes to become American, and has the bravery to move to this country, while also being kind to their fellow Americans, should be called an American like anyone else. Immigrants often have a tad bit more of the American spirit than those born here who take this country for granted. I know many people who have immigrated who have far more of an American spirit than I do. In Obama’s inaugural speech, he states, “For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness.” After all, if there were no immigrants willing to do tough labor, who would sit out in the simmering summer days with an ache all over from picking row after row of crops from the fields? The hard work that immigrants provide for our country goes back to the roots of America, those founding principles that say you must work hard to make your own living in this country. If someone is a hard-working and polite person, who contributes to society and does their fair share, why can’t they be considered as American as the rest of us? Why is it that they are denied citizenship, when they are willingly to work and pay their individual taxes unlike many who have the birthright of sitting at …show more content…
America is supposed to be the land of the free, and the home of the brave. My grandfather emigrated from here to Germany, and then returned years later when the war was over. He has told me before that it takes a lot of bravery to settle in a new place, and especially a country as big and vast as America. When I think of America; I think of different kinds of bravery. American values, like being kind to others, standing up for your beliefs, and helping out someone in need, are all brave acts. Americans standing up for their country and going off to war are some of the bravest of us all, but the common American doesn’t have to be a soldier to be brave and American. Some issues we see today in American culture are controlling of free speech, hate speech, intolerance, etc. The Americans I think of are not the rude and intolerant ones, but the ones who speak their minds and have the bravery to change the country for the better. I think of the bravery of people like Martin Luther King Jr, who is one of America’s most influential figures today. He is a true American, for having that bravery that many did not during his time. In his famous, “I have a dream” speech, he says something that I think truly represents the bravery he had, “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: ”We hold