On being an American

I think this is very timely, with the Fourth of July coming up.

"Theodore Roosevelt's ideas on immigrants and being an American in 1907:

"In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes and American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the person's becoming in every facet an American, and nothing but an American. ...

"There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag. ... We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language. ... And we have room for but one sole loyalty, and that is a loyalty to the American people."

Every American needs to read this. God bless America.

MARTHA IVESTER, Cape Girardeau