In the previous dreamacttexas post we wrote about how people sometimes announce to others around them that their family has been in the U.S. "x" generations - sort of like they are wearing a badge about themselves.
A couple of questions for readers. If you have a comment please respond by clicking "comment" after this post.
1. What does it mean when a person tells others their family has been here many (5, 7, 9 etc) generations?
2. How many generations does a family have to be here not to be considered immigrant?
3. What happens with mixed families, where there might be one immigrant and the rest 4th generation?
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1 comment:
I often tell the story of my immigrant family. Three brothers: Gideon, Frances, and Philip set out for a new life in a new country to plant and harvest crops. The journey must have been difficult as Gideon, the oldest of the three, died on the way, he must have been in his early 30s. Frances and Philip came here, married, planted and harvested crops, started businesses, had children. Some of their great grand children fought in a war--the American Revolution. These guys immigrated to the Americas in 1647. I cannot remember telling anyone that I am a 12th or 13th or 14th generation anything. It has never occurred to me that it was of any value how many generations my ascendants have been inhabitants of any certain geography. There are parts of this story that give me credibility with friends who are themselves immigrants.
In reference to your previous post about the LA Times article, I am completely baffled by why any legitimate news outlet is identifying suspected murderers by their immigration status. It makes as much sense to me as telling us what kind of shampoo they use. It does remind me of another time, when I was a child, in the 1960s when certain criminals were identified as negroes in the press. As if that explained it all.
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