To Become An American

I know very little about the history of American immigration, but not long ago I came across a lady whose parents had immigrated to the United States, probably in the early 1920's ... maybe a bit earlier ... and she had a copy of the oath they took when they became citizens. They took it in English, by the way, and they had to know what it meant. Here's what they agreed to:

"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the armed forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, so help me God."

I do not know what we require of those who become citizens today, but I do know they have to learn a lot about America before they can qualify, and that is good. Getting a legal green card to work in America probably does not require an oath like this one, but in my book if they are going to get the services provided by American citizenship, then they should at least take, and live by, the oath. And those who are here illegally are breaking the law in the first place, so the oath is meaningless, and they should be sent back to their home country ... post haste.

This is Gordon Sawyer, and may the wind always be at your back.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2005/5/134995