Are there any Americans Left?

Having grown up in the 1950’s, I was very much aware of the discrimination that abounded in this country. I myself was subjected to discrimination (I am a Jew). I can remember being excluded from the nearby swim club due to my religious background. There were signs posted saying, “NO JEWS – NO NEGROS – N O DOGS” (in that order).

I often had to fight my way to and from school, respond to discriminatory remarks, and be made to feel like less of a person because I am Jewish. I was offended by this, and felt the same way for those friends of mine who were Negro (that is what black people wanted to be called back then).

In the 1960’s, I was repeatedly passed over for promotion in my chosen career because as an Insurance salesman, I refused to answer question regarding race on insurance applications. The application stated that answering those questions was NOT mandatory; however, the powers at the top must have felt that the “token Jew” was being too defiant in not answering those questions.

When the Civil Rights act was fully implemented, I was delighted as I had marched with my Negro friends so that they could be “EQUAL”. At that point, as citizens of this country we could all be simply “Americans”; equal in all things and opportunities, protected from discrimination due to our skin color, ethnic background, or religious convictions.

Then, sometime later, some Black (used to be Negro) leaders decided that they (Blacks) should hereinafter be described as “Black Americans”. I had fought along side my friends so that they could simply be described as “Americans”. Then, those whose ethnicity is linked to China, Korea, etc. made themselves known now as “Asian Americans”, utilizing an entire continent in their label. I suppose they were not REALLY interested in being simply known as “Americans”, either. Those with a Hispanic background followed suit quickly by naming themselves “Hispanic Americans” (note that the Hispanic population didn’t have a particular continent, so they used their ethnicity to identify themselves).

At this point, the ‘Black-Americans’, decided that they needed an even MORE distinctive label, so they named themselves “African-American”, following the lead of the “Asian-Americans” in encompassing an entire continent in their definition. I wonder, are Black British citizens called “African-British”?, how about in France…”African-French”? What is the purpose of this labeling anyway? Why did so many people, (including Martin Luther King) fight for the right to be equal, only to insist that they be labeled differently from all other citizens?



The racial situation in this country has been on a decline since the Civil Rights Act. Affirmative action was needed in the very beginning (to get things started), but it has long outlived its use, or need. In the last several years, this program has caused more damage than it had ever done of a positive nature.

I have witnessed a ‘reversal of fortune’ as it applies to racial equality in this country. I fought for, and defended the Civil Rights movement so that all American citizens would be known simply as “Americans”, and so that all citizens would be afforded the same opportunities, education, and advantages available to all Americans, regardless of their cultural, religious, or ethic backgrounds.

Why have the very same people for whom I fought, marched, and provided support forsaken my efforts on their behalf? Why don’t they still want to simply be equal? Why do they find it necessary to separate themselves from the rest of us?

It is my expressed opinion that if you are born in the United States, you are an American. If you emigrate here, and become a citizen, you become an American. This is true no matter what color your skin, religious conviction to which you subscribe, or where you parents, grand-parents, or distant ancestors were from. If you want what YOU AND I struggled for in the 1950’s and 1960’; be proud to be known simply as an AMERICAN!