E Pluribus Unum: How Then/How Now?

By

Rachel K. Alexander

         I can still hear Paw Paw J. say, “Cher, dem teachers used to whip us wit’ a sycamore switch if we uttered a word of French.” Though his ancestors had been firmly planted in American soil since the 1700s, my great-grandfather, descended from Acadian refugees, grew up in a French-speaking household. And despite the countless years his family contributed to the U.S. economy by harvesting fields of strawberries, sweet potatoes and corn, the Louisiana Department of Education felt they had to beat the French out of Cajun students so they could become fully American.

Surely this is not what our Founding Fathers intended when they put “E Pluribus Unum” on the national seal. In this unofficial motto, which means “out of many, one,” they envisioned people of different religions and backgrounds finding refuge in one nation that believed in freedom. But through the years, the government instead created laws that forced conformity, aiming to mold people like Paw Paw J. into its ideal. Uniformity does not always lead to unity, however. At least one common belief—even if it is simply that everyone is entitled to his or her belief—is what leads “many” to be able to live and act as “one.”  

At the New Orleans National WWII Museum, I met seven diverse Americans whose experiences with discrimination resembled that of my great-grandfather’s. Carl Gorman, a Navajo American, was beaten and punished if caught talking Navajo at school. Likewise, Héctor García, who immigrated to the U.S. at age four during the Mexican Revolution, faced discrimination in his integrated high school English course, where his teacher told him that “no Mexican will ever get an A in my class.” What’s worse, the injustice grew outside of the classroom. Roger “Bill” Terry was admitted into the U.S. Army Air Corps at the start of the war. A day later, when it was discovered that Bill was “colored,” the six-foot, 175-pound basketball player was dismissed because he “weighed too much.” American-born George Saito was put in a concentration camp after the bombing of Pearl Harbor just for being Japanese.

Despite facing prejudices and hostility, these men did not forget their cultures or religions during the war. Héctor García founded the American GI Forum, which helped Mexican-American veterans receive equal opportunities for assistance from the Veteran’s Administration. George Saito formed Boy Scouts troops in Japanese-American concentration camps. Cajun soldiers resurrected their language, previously banned in all Louisiana schools, and served as translators in the army. And in the end, Carl Gorman used his native language in WWII by participating in the Navajo Code Talkers Association, where Navajos transmitted secret messages using codes based upon their native language. America failed to realize that the very aspects that made these Americans different also made them valuable to the army and, in a larger sense, the country. By embracing their differences and using them to defend freedom, these leaders embodied “E pluribus Unum.” Their love for America and the ideals upon which the nation was built allowed them to look past the injustice and ignorance of society and, as Gandhi suggested, be the change they wished to see in their world. The “Fighting for Democracy” exhibit reveals that the uniting factor of the “We” in “We the People” is not race, religion, or riches. The common thread among Americans is a goal of justice and equality and the fight for democracy.

Despite countless political firsts for minorities within the last few years—the first black president, the first Indian-American governor, and the first female Speaker of the House—some Americans still fail to grasp the meaning of “We” in “We the People.” When my Catholic youth group traveled to Mexico last year for a mission trip, we didn’t know whom we were going to serve. When it was disclosed that we would be building shelters for migrant workers, some students became angry. The possibility that some of the migrants might illegally migrate to America offended some of my fellow missionaries—so much so that they refused to work.  In another example last summer in Beijing, Henry Cejudo captured an Olympic gold medal in wrestling and redefined “American” perfectly. In response to criticism that he is not really a U.S. citizen, the American-born son of illegal immigrants said, “I’m proud of my Mexican heritage. But I’m an American. It’s the best country in the world. They call it the land of opportunity, and it is.”

Each year my high school, St. Joseph’s Academy, adopts a charism initiative. For the 2008-2009 school year, the goal is We All Are One: Gifted and Transformed by God’s Sprit. Using this theme, my school has motivated students to become one out of many by reaching out to others and using our Catholic faith to guide us. For instance, the Students for Unity club presented weekly presentations during Black History Month commemorating the progress of African-Americans from the time of slavery to the present. St. Joseph’s strives for unity within the community as well. During the Mardi Gras holidays, three dozen students participated in Serve Together 2009, where they volunteered in local charity hospitals and visited prisoners on death row. Each summer students travel on mission trips to Arizona, Honduras and Nicaragua. And in addition to school-wide food bank drives, toy drives and clothing drives, individual classes take on projects in the spirit of unity. My religion class’ current Lenten project is raising money for Operation Rice Bowl, a charity that encourages Catholics to fast in solidarity with the hungry, to pray for them, and to give money saved by fasting from luxuries to the starving and sick.

Though America has made strides towards accepting diversity, we need to return to our foundation, the Constitution, and remember that once upon a time our ancestors immigrated to America. We are all people of diversity. What binds us is our desire to “establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty.”