Fox News commentator Laura Ingraham is bothered by immigration. Really bothered. According to her, "The America we know and love doesn't exist anymore."
I would like to remind her -- and others who think like her -- that there was a time in this country when "broads" could not vote, a "papist" could not be elected president, and "the darkies" knew their place. Thank goodness that America does NOT exist anymore.
Years ago, while on playground duty at an elementary school, I watched a very young Hispanic boy cautiously approach a group of children kicking a soccer ball. "Me play? Me play?" he asked the others.
I smiled as I realized that in a very short time, his comment would become, "Can I play? I'm pretty good!" And, as immigrant children throughout our nation's history have done, his earlier hesitancy would disappear, and a confident child would shout, in perfect English, "Come on guys! I've got the ball. Let's get a game going and show them what we can do."
That process of Americanization continues to this day, and it is what made our nation almost unique in the world. Diverse races, nationalities, religions, and cultures would blend together into the rich tapestry that is the United States today.
I'm Jim Kline, and that is my Perspective.
