Tuesday, June 18, 2019
Americanish - Identity as a Citizen
“In 1903 the US Supreme Court refused to say that Isabel González was a citizen of the United States. Then again, they said, she wasn’t a exactly an immigrant either. And they said that the US territory of Puerto Rico, Isabel’s home, was “foreign to the United States in a domestic sense.””
I came across this as I was catch up the Radiolab. Part of identity is citizenship. Right? Yet, in some American territories it isn’t clear cut if you are a citizen of America or not. And, maybe they already have an identity, and they do not need American citizenship as part of their identity.
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Well, as Mark Lilla says, traditionally citizenship has been the glue that made American pluralism possible. Lately, the glue hasn't been so adhesive... presumably because identity politics (and identity thinking generally) have diluted the perceived value of citizenship. But without it, we're just a plurality and not a unified nation. As that trend continues, the appeal of citizenship to Puerto Ricans and other affiliates will lessen.
ReplyDeleteSydney,
ReplyDeleteWe are so fortunate to not have to live in the shadows or to fear the knock on the door by an authority figure who questions our nationality. I cannot imagine what some people in our country have to live under, some for decades, most just for wanting to find better living conditions for their families. And then there are all the refugees who are escaping horrible life-threatening conditions to try to make it to a country that greets them not with open arms but barricades. Given a chance most would become excellent citizens.