[Cynus]

There are two images of what it is to be an American, or really any national identity that is struggling with multiculturalism. One view is what I will call the “historical view.” It is to see your values and identity as shaped by American history, to feel that you are a part of the historical chain whereby America is the place that was settled at Plymouth and Jamestown, where the first patriots fought for independence, founded by the Founding Fathers, split by civil war, where the pioneers set out across the prairie, where freedom was defended against fascism and communism. This view of what it is to be an American is not to simply acknowledge these things as facts, or to say that America is merely the place where these things happened. Rather it is to say that to be an American means to see these facts as your history, that these are the things that happened to your people, that your principles and values--your very self--were forged from these events. You take attacks or slights against this story personally; you are proud of the triumphs, and ashamed of its failings. It is to feel that these are the things that we Americans did. Or perhaps you see America as the land where the slavers came from, that abducted your ancestors, brought them here in chains, kept them in slavery for centuries, until freed by the Civil War, only to fall prey to a century of segregation. Both viewpoints, and others besides, encompass what I am here calling the historical view since one sees ones identity as being defined by a historical heritage.

The second image of what it is to be an American is the “principle view.” And this is to say that being an American means believing in certain principles: freedom of speech, religion, democracy, and private property. Americans are the new people, those with no historical baggage, purely individuals rather than a people, possessing no history, no race, no religion, no ancestry, free rather than forged, self-created and perpetually self-creating. For much of American history these two views went together, American history and American principles were inseparable; coming to have the principles of America was the result of identifying with American history, seeing American history as your history resulted in having American principles. It was never imagined that these two views could be separated; of course being an American meant seeing yourself as the heir of and identifying with American history, to see the accomplishments of historical figures not as something that “they” did, the way that one sees, say, French history as something “they” did, but to see it as something “we” did.

Originally, however, these two views of what it is to be an American were separate. Each state saw their histories as separate and saw themselves as separate peoples. The Puritans in New England, the Quakers in Pennsylvania, and so on for the other states, each identified with different histories. People saw themselves not as Americans, but as Virginians, New Yorkers, etc. and were proud of their distinct historical heritage. “American principles” were seen as the rules by which these separate peoples would interact, but these principles did not form their identity. In the decades after the Civil War, and especially after World War I, the two views slowly came together (although Southeners and Northeners identified with a different history and thus adopted somewhat different political principles as a result of the Civil War) until a common identity had pretty much formed by the end of World War 2. Of course, African-Americans and Native-Americans never identified with this history and saw their identity as the result of very different histories and learned very different lessons as a result.

Multiculturalism is the attempt to pull these two views apart; cultural integration, in contrast, is the attempt to keep these two views together. As I have argued previously, integration has failed because it requires the adoption of a common history. Malcolm X famously derided attempts at integration on the grounds that African-American history was very different from European-Americans and it was not only pointless but cruel to attempt to cause African-Americans to adopt a false and alien history.

There are two types of multiculturalists. On the one hand, there are those who maintain the historical view of identity but seek to allow those who identify with various histories to be Americans. Many African-Americans, for example, following the example of Malcolm X could still be said to support the historical view of identity because he urged African-Americans to identify with their distinct history. This approach attempts to separate the two views of what it means to be an American but continues to allow one to identify with ones history. In many ways this is a throwback to the earlier conception of American identity I discussed where the various colonies identified with various histories, and American principles were rules by which the various groups interact.

However, there is a second form of multiculturalism that is something entirely new. What is new here is the attempt to adopt the principle view, not as rules for interactions between various groups, but as a theory of self-identity. Under this view of multiculturalism, you have no personal interest or emotional attachment to any specific American history, you do not need to see any history as your history. This is what it means to be what I have called a “Persona.” Personas, who are mostly white liberals, although there are many conservative Personas as well, mostly among neo-cons and Libertarians, identify with no history, feel no emotional attachment to a historical tradition, feel no loyalty or obligations, and see their identity entirely as a function of their lifestyle or profession. Personas are hyper-individualistic, identify with no historical ethnic group (although they identify instead with political groups), and evaluate, judge, and feel kinship with people based on their common tastes in music, art, fashion, and politics. They possess an elitist snobbery against those whose tastes are deemed unworthy (contrast this snobbery with the 19th century snobbery based on genealogy.) Rural folk, conservatives, lower classes, and the uneducated all come in for scorn and mockery for the crime of being insufficiently hip. Although Personas decry racism, they are very different from, say, African-Americans who honor the sacrifices and struggles of their ancestors. Personas feel no such affinity for their ancestors. In fact, Personas probably feel that it is racist to identify so closely with ones ancestors (which puts them in the awkward position of not knowing whether to approve of other racial groups feeling such an affinity).

Much of the split between Liberals and Conservatives is the result of the clash over these two conceptions of what it is to be an American.

[phaster]

I'm not too surprised that so far no one has been up the challange to answer the question what does it mean to be an american. This is because this country is basically going thru a balkinization process.

In the past what made america a super power was immigrants from around the world, who worked hard to integrate themselves into the american main stream and to some degree there was enough economic opportunity and resources to see that the next generation (the children) was going to have a better life than their parents.

What has changed for the most part is large segements of the US population are turninging their back on the things that made the USA an economic and intellectual global superstar. Basically we have a large segment of the USA population who are not very different from some of the religious wack jobs in the middle east who live in caves and have various fatwas against anything thing they don't understand like for example science, the democratic process, and the global market place.

Presidet Bush is a prime example of what I'm talking about, in that his gun ho policies are based upon a gut religious feeling that is suppose to be based upon the ancient religious text other wise known as the bible, an take too many items out of context to suit their political world view.

Personally I don't think very highly of president bush or individuals of his ilk, because they don't realize that the bible was written for basically an ancient illiterate class of individuals, the parables for example in the new testament as told by jesus were suppose to be a brief, succinct story, in prose or verse, that illustrates a moral or religious lesson. And the prest form of the new testament bible was basically put together by a bunch of political hacks (thought I'd try an use a contemporary political term) at the council of nicea.

Getting back to the question what does it mean to be an american, well I'm sad to say that to be an american today means that an individual is apt to be fat, dumb, unhappy and self centered.

Ya may disagree with my basic assessment but I think basic statistics can be used to show a correlation.

In the USA today more than 2/3 of the general population is over weight or in other words FAT!

On many standard tests about general knowledge, in science, math, economics, geography, history, etc., ya have self assessments by adults and students in the USA who rate themselves as well informed and knowledgable, but in fact when compaired to global populations, the knowledge base of many in the USA falls way below many other nations, therefore I think the term DUMB is appropriate.
UNHAPPY might be a bit more difficult to show a direct linkage, but I content that too many people in the USA have lost sight of what's really important in life, for example health, friends and family. But too often in the consumer driven US culture, it seems that people equate happiness with material goods and wealth. This seeking material goods and wealth is basically at the root of the subprime credit problem, and has a direct harmful effect on the environment.

My last point SELF CENTERED, aagain might be hard for many in the general public to own up to. For example in the USA it seems gas prices are everywhen in the news, but many in the general public and it seems many politicans don't seem to realize that if they looked in the mirror they would see the very individuals who are responsible for the high global demand for products such as oil.

In a larger sense every person on this planet aspires to live the american dream and be an "american," its just basic human nature to be fat, dumb, unhappy and self centered! Its a pretty comfortable life style, but the reality is that its an unsustainable lifestyle.

[AlexdeLarge]

It means you have the right to bitch about your lot in life, when you do not have a clue how good you really have it. The poorest of our poor have it better than half the people on the planet! The right to sit back and wait for the government and others to take care of your problems. To say that the greedy banker made me sign for a loan I had no way of paying back. The right to buy a cheesebuger using a credit card that charges you 18% interest and to then wonder why I can't make ends meet. The right to not understand that working hard, taking care of your family is your responsibility and not the "Village".

Americans have become a nation of Whiners and its time somebody slapped us back to our senses. Our founding fathers would be ashamed of what we have become today. But no.....we are getting ready to elect a baffoon that panders to your most obscene whines. I hope we get what we deserve.

If you can't succeed in America, it's your own damn fault.

[darwinsdog]

To be an American means that you were born in or immigrated to the Americas: Anywhere between the Alaskan/Canadian arctic coast & Tierra del Fuego.

Personally, I don't care much about cultural or religious or national history. I'm a naturalist. I study natural history. My loyalty, if you will, is to the land & its natural productions and I could give a rat's ass about nationalism or any & all cultural traditions. My viewpoint is ecocentric, not anthropocentric or even strictly biocentric. I wish there were no borders or national governments whatsoever. Governments are human institutions & as such, are arbitrary, artificial, self-serving & certain to be utterly corrupt. Most of what's been posted in this thread is completely irrelevant to me.

[Homesteader]

Nationalism is simply one more trap in the same vein as political parties or religious views which serve very well at keeping people fighting amongst themselves while the foxes plunder the hen house.

[emeraldg40]

It means freedom. It means I can stand up for myself in a court of law and be judged fairly. It means if I dont like one state, I can go to another freely. I dont have to wear a burka and walk behind a man. The only chains on Americans today are those that are self-imposed because of being in debt and/or letting themselves become addicted. I know why the immigrants are coming here. I just wish they would slow down

[threadbear]

What does it mean to be American? Hmm.... Pizza, pop tarts, and prostrating yourself before authority.

[emeraldg40]

What does it mean to be American? Hmm.... Pizza, pop tarts, and prostrating yourself before authority.

Do we hum John Cougar's " I fight authority and authority always wins"?