First
generation American.
Spent your
whole life overseas.
You married
right. You married well.
Happy wife,
your land can be changed.
Now you have
become an American.
First
generation un-American
Spent your
whole life in the States.
You married
wrong. What have you done?
Unhappy
wife, your land can be changed.
You can no
longer be an American.[1]
*************************************
First
generation to come to America,
The unwanted
refuse of the earth.
Spit out
from your native land,
Came on
ships as chattel.
We don’t
want you here, you Irish,
Your blood
won’t make this land American.
First
generation to come to America,
The precious
cargo of the earth.
Stolen from
your native land,
Came on
ships as chattel.
We want you
here, in chains.
This land
won’t make your blood American.[2]
**************************************
Second
generation born overseas,
Your parents
move and travel.
You’ve never
lived on the land,
But blood is
stronger.
You will
remain an American.
Second
generation born in America,
Your parents
move and travel.
You’ve lived
on the land all your life,
But blood is
stronger.
You will
never be an American.[3]
*******************************
Three
generations born in Mexico,
Now you live
in the U.S.A.
You’ve never
once moved or shifted.
You’ll have
to if you want to stay Mexican,
Your
land has become American.
Three
generations born in America,
Now you live
in Mexico.
You’re
always moving, always shifting.
Your blood
expands, pours across borders,
Forcing this
land to become American.[4]
*********************************
Four
generations born in America,
Builders of
the nation, built with your own two hands.
Architects
of freedom, masterminds of democracy.
With your
blood, sweat, and tears
You have
made this land American
Four
generations born in America
Builders of
the nation, built with your own two hands.
Freedom and
democracy aren’t your birthright.
Your blood,
sweat, and tears,
Will not
make you American.[5]
*******************************************
Five
generations welcomed to America:
Dutch, German,
English, Swedish
Welcome: Pure,
unadulterated, Anglo-Saxon stock.
All others:
Shut the door. No more.
We want to
keep our blood American.
Five
generations shut out from America:
Italian,
Jewish, Indian, Japanese.
Unwelcome: Impure,
adulterated, tainted blood.
Our Nordic
brothers, welcome! Bring us more!
We want to
keep our blood American. [6]
****************************************
Six
generations born in Europe:
Germany,
Ireland, England, Sweden.
Newly
planted immigrants,
You are
welcome here.
This land
will make you American.
Land is
stronger than blood
Six
generations born in America:
Cherokee, Iroquois,
Pottawatomi, Hopi.
You’ve been
here long enough,
It’s time to
go away.
This land
does not make you American
Blood is
stronger than land.[7]
*****************************
All
generations to become American:
You write
your story on this land,
You write
your story through your children.
You redefine
both blood and land.
You decide
what it means to be an American. [8]
***********************************
Citizenship:
Jus soli:
Defined by the land you are born on.
Jus sanguinis: Defined by your genes, your people, your
blood.[9]
[1]
1940: The year white American women
could no longer lose their citizenship for marrying foreign men.
1855: the
year white foreign women could gain citizenship by marrying an American man. https://www.pri.org/stories/2016-07-04/us-has-come-long-way-its-first-highly-restrictive-naturalization-law
[2]
1845: The Great Hunger-Potato famine begins in Ireland through both natural and
man-made causes. Half the population of
Ireland died. A quarter came as refugees
to the U.S. The U.S. fought vehemently
against them because their religion, culture, and way of life was “incompatible
with American values.” By the 1890’s,
Irish Americans were accepted into mainstream society and began to fight
against “those immigrants” who flooding the U.S. from Southern and Eastern
Europe. https://www.history.com/news/when-america-despised-the-irish-the-19th-centurys-refugee-crisis
1868/1870: Africans and those of African descent allowed
birth citizenship and naturalization.
[3]1790: The year children born to
Americans living outside of the U.S. also granted U.S. citizenship (unless
their father is foreign) http://www.indiana.edu/~kdhist/H105-documents-web/week08/naturalization1790.html.
1898: The year
American-born people of Chinese descent could become American citizens. Those born in China (Japan, Korea)
could not become naturalized citizens until 1943.
[4] 1848: Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended
Mexican-American War and Mexico gave states from Texas to California to the
United States. Current residents could
choose to move to Mexico or take on American citizenship. http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=3&psid=1141
[5] 1868/1870: Africans and those of African descent allowed
birth citizenship and naturalization.
[6]
1924: Wording taken from speech to
congress by Ellison Durant Smith. Laws passed in 1921 and 1924 drastically
limited immigration to ensure that 86% of immigrants came only from N/W Europe,
11% came from S/E Europe, and 2% came from the rest of the world. Most Asians (and much of the rest of the
world) were not allowed at all.
1923: naturalized Indian citizens have citizenship
revoked due to Supreme court deciding they are “not white”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Bhagat_Singh_Thind
[7] 1790/1795: The U.S. passes first
laws on naturalization and defining citizenship. Any “free white person” who has lived in the
U.S. for two years, is of “good moral character”, and swears an oath to uphold
the constitution can become a citizen.
Their children also automatically gained citizenship…unless their father
was foreign.
1924:
Native Americans granted U.S. citizenship. https://www.pri.org/stories/2016-07-04/us-has-come-long-way-its-first-highly-restrictive-naturalization-law
[8]
1965: New laws passed that allowed
immigration to be determined on skills/family ties and not on race, religion, gender,
or marital status. By the 1990’s, only
16% of immigrants came from Europe. The
other 84% came from the rest of the world.
https://www.history.com/topics/immigration/us-immigration-since-1965
1967:
Interracial marriage allowed everywhere in the U.S.
https://www.history.com/topics/immigration/immigration-united-states-timeline
[9] All
countries use one, the other, or a combination to define citizenship. Europe tends to go by blood. The Americas tend to go by land. https://www.history.com/news/birthright-citizenship-history-united-states
