Well said. A few days ago on a news website I read a long piece about racism in France. People who live in glass houses... Nancy ------- I was never lost, but I was bewildered once for three days. --Daniel Boone On Jan 21, 2007, at 8:23 PM, James Brothers wrote: > Except when attending an ethnic get together where a shared > heritage is of interest, I'm just an American. Which I will grant > some Canadians take issue with, as they too can be styled > "Americans". At a Highland Games or Celtic Festival my Irish, > Scots, and Welsh ancestry is of importance otherwise it really > doesn't matter. My clan affiliation is as well. When attending a > Renaissance Fair the English can also be of interest. Seldom, if > ever, is my Norwegian or French ancestry of significance. When > attending Pow-wows that I am Mohawk and Ottawa is most important. > But for everyday use, I'm an American. > > That there have been and still are racists in The United States > goes without saying. And there is certainly room for improvement. > But the fact that we can have this conversation, and perhaps even > more importantly are having this conversation is more important. > That many Americans still view our nation as a work in progress is > a good thing. Too much of the rest of the world is very willing to > criticize others, but unwilling to look at themselves. > > And being over 40 I can remember "White Only" signs, country clubs > who systematically excluded all but a select few who were the right > color and went to the right church, and other overt forms of > discrimination. We've come a long way and still have a ways to go. > But that we recognize we are not there yet is significant. Much of > the rest of the world (and I've seen it first hand) is perfectly > happy with where they are and see no reason to change how they do > things. > > > > James Brothers, RPA > [log in to unmask] > > To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the > instructions > at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html