As a 12 year old boy, I got off a plane from Ireland in 1970 and became a proud American. This 11-year old born in San Antonio shows why America is the greatest nation on earth and how to answer racist morons. http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/watch-11-year-old-boy-returns-to-nba?ref=fpblg.
Confronting hate and bigotry with reason and facts alone is not enough. Thank you to Sebastien De La Cruz for powerfully showing why America is world's best hope for learning to respect all and to live in peace.
John, what's with the chauvinist comments? Some Americans say an American Hispanic is not American, others rightly stand by the victim of the insults, and your reaction is that the US is "the greatest nation on earth"?
ReplyDeleteThe US is generally in the top 15-30 in most rankings I see. Rarely number one. This whole event is an embarrassment, not something to be proud of.
First, I speak from some experience. The USA is a huge multiracial democracy and so is unique in the world. Since its founding, with the sin of slavery embedded, through the Civil War, when 55% of the population in South Carolina were slaves, and to today, the USA more directly than any other nation works daily on creating respect and liberty for all, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or national origin. As President Obama said in his 2008 speech in Philadelphia on race, the nation works daily on creating a more perfect union. I am proud of Sebastien De La Cruz, the leadership provided by the Spurs, Heat, NBA, and the crowd's embrace of Sebastien. The US is not perfect and we do rank much lower than we should on health metrics for example. But there is no place in the world that works so genuinely for a perfect union for ALL people.
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