Teddy Roosevelt On Immigrants In America

In response to this news.

Theodore Roosevelt's ideas on immigrants and being an American, June 26, 1907.

"In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an 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."

~ Theodore Roosevelt 1907

And for those who say this doesn't sound compassionate, let me say that the most compassionate thing we can do for immigrants is to help them assimilate, rather than remaining in gangs and ghettos, unable to speak the language their newfound home, only to become wards of society rather than becoming meaningful contributors and participants in it.