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Message: <blockquote data-quote="dilligaf" data-source="post: 726867" data-attributes="member: 11476">Dear Editor:So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry.  Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to peoplelike Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to acceptthis new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 whenthere was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in along line in New York and be documented. Some would even getdown on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They madea pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country ingood and bad times. They made learning English a primaryrule in their new American households and some even changedtheir names to blend in with their new home.   They had waved good bye to their birth place to give theirchildren a new life and did everything in their power tohelp their children assimilate into one culture. Nothing washanded to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor lawsto protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity.  Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out.My father fought along side men whose parents had comestraight over fromGermany,Italy,FranceandJapan. Noneof these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thoughtabout what country their parents had come from. They wereAmericans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor ofJapan. They were defending theUnited States of Americaasone people.  When we liberatedFrance, no one in those villages were lookingfor the French-American or the German American or the IrishAmerican. The people ofFrancesaw only Americans. And wecarried one flag that represented one country. Not one ofthose immigrant sons would have thought about picking upanother country's flag and waving it to represent who theywere. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who hadsacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knewwhat it meant to be an American. They stirred the meltingpot into one red, white and blue bowl.   And here we are with a new kind of immigrant who wants the samerights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it byplaying with a different set of rules, one that includes theentitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to theirmother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an Americanis all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed onEllis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than thatfor all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising futuregenerations to create a land that has become a beacon forthose legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example bythose waving foreign country flags.  And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue ofLiberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting onthe immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking aboutdismantling theUnited Statesjust yet.   (signed)Rosemary LaBonte  KEEP THIS LETTER MOVING. FOR THE WRONG THINGS TO PREVAIL THE RIGHTFUL MAJORITY NEEDS TO REMAIN COMPLACENT AND QUIET!! LET THIS NEVER HAPPEN!!  I sincerely hope this letter gets read by millions of peopleall across the nation!!</blockquote>

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