How American Are You?

What does it mean to be American?

Is it the way you speak—the crispness of your accent, the slang you use, the ease with which you navigate small talk?
Is it what you eat—burgers, hot dogs, apple pie, or does it count if your comfort food is dumplings, tamales, or pho?
Is it the way you dress—jeans and sneakers, or a cowboy hat, or a baseball cap turned backward?
Is it the sports you watch—football on Sundays, March Madness, the World Series?

Or what if it’s all of those things and none of those things at the same time?

Because if being American were just about habits, tastes, or appearances, then who gets to decide which ones count?

Once upon a time, being American meant being white, Protestant, and English-speaking. Then the Irish came, and the Italians, and the Germans, and they weren’t considered fully American—until one day, they were. Later, it was Jewish immigrants. Then it was Asian immigrants. Then Latin American.

Each wave of newcomers was told, You don’t belong here. You’re not one of us.

Until, eventually, they were.

So what does that tell us?

It tells us that American identity is always evolving. That it is not a single race, language, or tradition. That it has never been one thing.

To be American is not about where you were born or how many generations your family has been here. It’s not about whether your name is easy to pronounce or whether your English is perfect.

To be American is to believe in the promise of this place, even when it hasn’t always believed in you.

It is to shape it, contribute to it, redefine it—the way every wave of immigrants before us has done.

So, how American are you?

Maybe the real answer is: as much as you choose to be.