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As citizens of these 50 United States, we are above all, Americans. It is our
ancestry that gives each of us a unique and distinctive presence characterizing what the
word "American" represents. Our individual heritage must be remembered and passed on from
generation to generation as a reminder of who we are and what we contributed to this
magnificent nation.
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| "They Built a Home for the Soul of the Nation"
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THEY CAME FROM FARAWAY places and faraway times and merged their talents and customs into a new nationality and
created an America which serves as a beacon of hope for the world.
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They began in 1492 when under the
leadership of an Italian explorer the men of Spain including one black man and six Jews
arrived in the lands of the Indians. Then came English and Dutch, Scotch-Irish and Swedes,
Germans and French and later all the different peoples of Europe, Africa and Asia. In partnership,
they built a country strong in its richness of ethnic variety committed to the quest for freedom,
compassion and respect for human differences.
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| "I Have a Dream" |
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"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning
of its creed --- "We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal."
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This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new
meaning "My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers
died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."
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Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California."
The above are extracts from Martin Luther King Jr's speech,
"I Have a Dream." |
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