From the coastal woodlands of the Iroquois,
Through the endless plains of the Sioux,
To the deserts of the Southwest Pueblos,
A country of a liberty and justice was born.
The English arrived from the countless shires of the British Isles,
The Germans and French arrived from the basin of the Rhine,
The Dutch arrived from the lowlands of the Netherlands,
All driven in a search for political and religious freedom.
From the Iberian Peninsula came Spaniards,
In an attempt to spread the initiative of God, gold, and glory,
From the Scandinavian Peninsula came Swedes,
In an attempt to achieve the promised life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Barred in chains of cruel indignity,
Arrived slaves from the vast savannas of Africa,
The Jews fled the scapegoats of religious persecution,
The Irish fled the paucity and famishment of crop failure.
From the war-torn countries of Europe,
Arrived Croats, Greeks, Italians, Poles, and Slovaks
Cubans, Tibetans, Russians, and Vietnamese chose democracy over communism,
Chinese, Indians, Koreans, and Japanese sought the great opportunities of our land.
Arabs, Israelis, Kurds, and Muslims escaped the war-prone Middle-East countries,
To settle among each other in the true promised land of peaceful serenity,
Central and South Americans fled their poverty stricken towns and cities,
To settle in a land of integrity, fidelity, allegiance, happiness, and freedom.
Every person who sought refuge in our land,
Brought along profound dreams,
Dreams of independence and liberty,
Dreams of freedom and equality.
As promised by the renowned torchbearer,
Upon entering the land of the free,
And the home of the brave,
All of their dreams came true.
These are the people of the United States,
Together we are Americans,
And united we will stand. |
