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Waiting for someone to post their image on what defines an American so I can give a link to the website, This image truly shows what makes up America, we may all have different backgrounds, but by definition, we are American citizens, who are all born equally and treated fairly by peers. (Edit.) What Makes America Great is Diversity - Adam McLane

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What does it mean to be an American?

In his letter, Crèvecoeur defines what an American is: “The American man is a new man, who acts upon new principles…”  From this, we know that he believes an American is someone who is free to act on their own and form their own decisions and choices. He states this at the end of his letter saying, “Involuntary idleness, servile dependence, penury, and useless labour, he has passed to toils of a very different nature, rewarded by ample subsistence. This is an American.” Throughout this letter, he compares England to America and explains why they wanted to come here: “Ubi panis ibi patria” “Where there is bread, there is the homeland.” He explains they found a home in America when they couldn't in Europe. America is a place for all individuals from all nations to come and melt into one race, meaning that they should all come together to make men with sets of values, those “who labor and prosperity will one day cause great change in the world.” He claims they were here to triumph, where people shared the same belief and worked towards the same goal: to make something of their lives and prosper.

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"Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, whose labours and posterity will one day cause great change in the world. Americans are the western pilgrims, who are carrying along with them that great mass of arts, sciences, vigour, and industry, which began long since in the East; they will finish the great circle." -From What is an American? by Crèvecoeur.

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This picture shows enlightenment thinkers arguing if people can be trusted to rule. The social contract theory connects to this. John Locke said people have rights like life and freedom, and Rousseau said laws should be based on what people want. Both believed power should come from the people not kings.