DECEMBER, 1923
THE UNITED AMERICAN
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PLAIN TALK ON AMERICAN CITIZENSHIP
rpHE INDIFFERENCE with which a large
* number of foreign born regard the attain­
ment of American citizenship is-nothing short
of appalling.
This attitude is by no means confined to the
non-English speaking immigrants living among
us, it is an attitude quite common amdng people
from the British Isles, Canada and from the
foreign English speaking peoples in general,
who have no language impediments blocking
their way to knowledge of America, her politi­
cal, educational and social institutions and
citizenship. The task is admittedly much great­
er for the average non-English speaking alien
who may be anything but an adept in acquiring
the American language knowledge, the first
momentous prerequisite by which he may
hope to gain true knowledge of America en­
abling him in time to take his place as an intel­
ligent loyal citizen among the people of this
land.
People of English and Canadian birth coming
to the United States have as many prejudices
to overcome as any other alien. Their training
has as much of an autocratic background as
any people of foreign birth. America, particu­
larly today, with its self-imposed measures of
restriction, which aliens particularly love to
refer to as abridgements of liberty they en­
joyed even in their autocratic old countries, is
a subject of ridicule as much among Canadians,
Englishmen, Scotchmen and Irishmen as
among Germans, Scandinavians, Poles, Italians
and Greeks.
Reverence and respect for American institu­
tions, set up and maintained by the people them­
selves and not by autocratic rulers claiming
divine rights, is seemingly as difficult for Eng­
lish speaking aliens to acquire as it is for the
non-English speaking aliens of the latter clas­
sification.
♦
*
♦
of the Standard conscientious citizens are strug­
gling to maintain.
The alien who is to become the satisfactory
type of citizen must first of all become attached
to our institutions and type of government. He
must make a fair comparison of our form of
government with the government he left behind
across the sea and to which he will be required
to renounce allegiance before he will be per­
mitted to swear a new allegiance to this gov­
ernment and for all that it stands.
This should be a very serious matter and the
chief point of consideration with every alien
aspiring to American citizenship.
♦
*
*
The time to make comparison and form an
opinion of unqualified choice of allegiance is
BEFORE applying for American citizenship,
not AFTER. The citizen of foreign birth who
reviles his country of adoption on any pretext
in matters of legislation, decisions of our courts,
in matters of local state or national conduct of
government, who doesn’t regard the ballot he is
privileged to use, except when he in the ver­
nacular has “an ax to grind,” is a “paper” citi­
zen, an undesirable citizen, a perjurer, whose
citizenship is a menace to America and the
children of America, no matter what his race,
nationality or professed religion may be.
If there was something sacred about every
little grant of common right, extended through
the benign grace of a sovereign monarch to the
people. of a foreign country, the American
rights in citizenship constitute a temple of com­
mon rights without any abridgement of equal­
ity, where no man should enter except those
who come of their heart’s desire.
If you are a member of a church and believe
in God and the purity of the deity you approach
the sanctuary in a spirit of humility. When
your spiritual adviser, by the authority vested
in him through his noble calling imploringly
offers you the sacrament of the communion, he
asks of you but one qualification — a contrite
heart: the only thing that matters to make you
acceptable in the eyes of God, your Creator.
The same process is necessary for all aliens
no matter what land they come from if they
are to become desirable citizens. “Paper” citi­
zens are analogous to “card” masons. Both
are a drug on the market and nearly always fail
to live up to a moderately acceptable standard.
Having obtained the paper or the card by going
through the prescribed performances, the ends
There is a coordinate divine plan and divine
for which they have striven have with them
been largely met and they proceed to acquire concept incorporated in the principles that form
all the benefits these credentials may obtain in the base to our governmental structure. It is
their favor without a thought regarding the re­ the keystone in the arch through which you
sponsibilities assumed and that their indiffer­ enter, bearing this inscription: To FREEDOM,
ence to true principles will eventually have a JUSTICE, AND HUMAN EQUALITY.
contaminating influence conducive to a lowering
Only those of a contrite heart will truly ac-