What Makes Someone a True American

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The question of defining an American is a challenge. There has been a lot of hullabaloo between people about what an American is. Does being an American consist of having certain characteristics of believing in a certain belief? Is an American a person who was born in the United States, looks white, or has blonde hair? The answer isn’t based on how a person dresses, looks or acts. Mira, an Indian woman who came to America said, “I am here to maintain an identity, not to transform it.” Mira shows that because she has lived more than thirty years in America that has nothing to do with her being considered American. Being an American is not just living in the country, but being able to love it, contribute to it and willing to call yourself an American. An American is a person who loves the country and is willing to do anything for it. A person can get closer to America by knowing the beliefs, important dates in history and contributing to the country. Anyone who wakes up early in the morning to go work is contributing to America by helping America expand and grow larger. Not only is a person contributing by working, but also students who attend school every day and learn more. They’re preparing themselves for the future so they can help out America. Mukherjee, Mira’s older sister has lived in America for over thirty years, in which she married a Canadian and helped the community by working and teaching at Berkeley University in California. Now, after all these years in which she has been in America, she considers herself American. Being an American is also a person’s personal choice. If a person chooses not to call themselves American, but instead the ethnicity from where they originally came from, then that’s up to them. A person becomes American because they choose to be one. They love what we stand for, and they are willing to renounce any loyalties to all other

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