What does it mean to be an American

What does it mean to be an American

What does it mean
to be an American?

Bradley Project Releases Report
“America faces an identity crisis. The next generation of Americans will
know less than their parents know about our history and founding ideals.
And many Americans are more aware of what divides us than of what
unites us. We are in danger of becoming not ‘from many, one’—E Pluribus
Unum—but its opposite, ‘from one, many.’”

Americans worry about their national identity.

The American Identity
 As America grows ever more diverse, the question of what it means to

be an American yields an increasingly complicated answer. How do
Americans really see themselves today, and how does the world see
Americans?
Diversity is a key part of the answer. America has always been a nation
of immigrants; it remains so today.
  The question of American identity is partly a question of character. To
survive, a democratic society must be able to pass on to its younger
generation the commitment of all citizens to civic responsibility and instill in
children character traits such as honesty and personal responsibility that
are necessary to support a democratic political culture. 
Public education is one of the core institutions for shaping our national
identity and national character. A democracy cannot survive without an
educated citizenry.
The American identity has always been partly a dream about shared
values and national unity. Our Founding Fathers hoped for this.

Public Opinion
To inform its work, the Bradley Project asked HarrisInteractive to conduct a
study on Americans’ views on national identity. Harris surveyed more than
2,400 Americans, including asking an open-ended question on what it
means to be an American.

Verbatim:
Freedom of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Just
as it says I truly believe it this statement, and no one can
change it. I am SOOOOOOOO LUCKY
I love my country even when I do not agree with the
politics. I believe that as...

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