November 20, 2024
Immigration and American Exceptionalism
Robert P. George
McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence, Princeton University
Immigration and American Exceptionalism
Robert P. George
McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence, Princeton University
Ruth Miller, introducer, and Robert P. George
Minutes of the 11th Meeting of the 83rd Year
The Old Guard of Princeton met on 20 November 2024 at the Princeton Library. Geroge Bustin presided. Francis Slade led the invocation. Minutes of the previous meeting were read by Sarah Ringer. The speaker was introduced by Ruth Miller.
There were many guests: Alan Poritz hosted by Deborah Poritz; Richard K. Smith by John Cotton; Judy Malin by Seth Malin; Caroline Weintz by Walter Weintz; Kristen Callahan by Ann Damsgaard; Joan Kuskin by Harold Kuskin; Terri Haberman by Irv Urken; John Fleming by Joan Fleming. Total attendance was 150.
Robbie George is the Princeton University McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence, the same chair held by Woodrow Wilson and, just prior to Mr. George, by the author of one of my favorite novels, Walter F. Murphy.
George arrived at Princeton in 1985, replaced Murphy teaching constitutional interpretation in 1995, and became the holder of the McCormick chair in 1999. He is known as something of an anomaly on the Princeton campus: a devout Catholic, a social conservative, and a champion of traditional values.
He came to speak about American exceptionalism. That America is exceptional is in his view obvious - too obvious to dispute. That we are a democratic republic and have endured for almost two and a half centuries - which has never been done before - is a testament to how exceptional we are. And that, unlike others before us, we have avoided the pitfalls of falling into the worst kind of tyranny again argues for how extraordinary this American experiment has been.
So how do we maintain it? How do we avoid the pitfalls of other countries?
What does American exceptionalism mean? It does not mean we are more virtuous or intelligent. It does not depend upon ethnicity or common race or religion or cultural heritage. And so thus it is decidedly not what is referred to as “blood and soil.”It does not depend upon who you are related to or where you were born. Ours is different.
We the people try to live up to the constitutional principles upon which our country is based – and though our record is far from unblemished (for example the mistreatment of native Americans and of enslaved people forcibly brought here from Africa and subsequent Jim Crow laws), we are a country based upon principles, those captured in the second sentence of the Declaration of Independence. "We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights,
that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."
To affirm this does not depend upon race, ethnicity, religion etc. People really can truly become Americans because they don’t have to be anything in particular. And when one becomes an American, that person is as American as someone whose ancestors may have come over on the Mayflower.
So the question is how people who immigrated here come to be truly American, beyond getting passports and beyond attaining citizenship. This is different than in other countries. Can you really become Greek, for example, or Chinese by emigrating and becoming citizens of their countries?
One becomes American by developing gratitude for the freedom, the opportunity, the liberty and the security that America provides. One develops an appreciation for and belief in the goodness of American ideals, as expressed in the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution of the United States. From this there arises an aspiration to become a citizen and a willingness to shoulder the responsibilities of a citizen. And beyond this aspiration, to not only become a citizen but to make great sacrifices for the nation.
Nevertheless, almost all immigrants came here not for some abstract belief in our principles, but because they were fleeing something. George used his family’s arrival in West Virgina as a paradigm for how people become Americans.
George’s paternal Syrian grandfather fled religious persecution, while his maternal Italian grandfather fled wrenching poverty in southern Italy. They both ended up in West Virgina working on the railroad and in back-breaking jobs in the coal mines. They had pride in being citizens, they took pride in voting. And both grandfathers were patriotic. They appreciated the opportunity that America had provided their families. They did not come here for some abstract commitment to American political beliefs. They were simply fleeing something bad.
Four of the five sons of his paternal grandfather and the only son of his maternal grandfather served in combat during World War II. It never occurred to the Italian clan they would favor Italy over the United States. There was no doubt as to where their loyalties lay. And, as soldiers, they could well have been called upon to give what President Lincoln called “the last full measure of devotion.”
What about the American Protestant worry that Jews or Catholics might have divided loyalties? Might they find some conflicts between what their faiths would demand and what our country demanded of them? In retrospect this was not a concern. They were loyal Americans.
George emphasized the gratitude that these immigrants felt for the opportunity that America had afforded them and the opportunity that America provided for their children and grandchildren to gradually move up the social and economic ladder. While they suffered during the Depression and were at some points unemployed, as were so many others, they did not blame America and simply yearned to return to work. And though they experienced discrimination, they viewed this as an aberration, not at all reflective of the America they loved.
One touching story George told was of the first in the family to graduate from college and then law school, his grandfather’s sister’s son John. While his grandparents’ generation spoke broken English and only one could read and write in English, when John graduated from law school his mother stopped to kiss every step leading up to the law school building. Her son, the new graduate, admonished his mother saying “Mom, cut it out. You’re acting like an immigrant.”
George touched gingerly and quickly on the plight of those West Virginians whose families had been here for many generations and who were falling behind and becoming welfare dependent. This has had a destructive effect on non-immigrant West Virginia families even as immigrant families were moving ahead and has led to resentment as they see others moving ahead as they are moving backwards.
In summary, George noted that the practice of transmitting our civic culture is embodied in the important ideas of America. Immigrants are, he believes, a great strength to America. Discussions about whether multiculturism is good or bad are often jeopardized by different definitions of the term and an inability on the part of the participants to truly listen and not talk past each other.
America, George says, is based on limited government, equality of opportunity, morally ordered liberty, private property, economic freedom, and the rule of law. Efforts to live up to these principles make us a great people and is why we are a magnet for people all over the world. Furthermore, maintenance of our civic culture is the task of everyone.
Respectfully submitted,
Stephen Silverman
There were many guests: Alan Poritz hosted by Deborah Poritz; Richard K. Smith by John Cotton; Judy Malin by Seth Malin; Caroline Weintz by Walter Weintz; Kristen Callahan by Ann Damsgaard; Joan Kuskin by Harold Kuskin; Terri Haberman by Irv Urken; John Fleming by Joan Fleming. Total attendance was 150.
Robbie George is the Princeton University McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence, the same chair held by Woodrow Wilson and, just prior to Mr. George, by the author of one of my favorite novels, Walter F. Murphy.
George arrived at Princeton in 1985, replaced Murphy teaching constitutional interpretation in 1995, and became the holder of the McCormick chair in 1999. He is known as something of an anomaly on the Princeton campus: a devout Catholic, a social conservative, and a champion of traditional values.
He came to speak about American exceptionalism. That America is exceptional is in his view obvious - too obvious to dispute. That we are a democratic republic and have endured for almost two and a half centuries - which has never been done before - is a testament to how exceptional we are. And that, unlike others before us, we have avoided the pitfalls of falling into the worst kind of tyranny again argues for how extraordinary this American experiment has been.
So how do we maintain it? How do we avoid the pitfalls of other countries?
What does American exceptionalism mean? It does not mean we are more virtuous or intelligent. It does not depend upon ethnicity or common race or religion or cultural heritage. And so thus it is decidedly not what is referred to as “blood and soil.”It does not depend upon who you are related to or where you were born. Ours is different.
We the people try to live up to the constitutional principles upon which our country is based – and though our record is far from unblemished (for example the mistreatment of native Americans and of enslaved people forcibly brought here from Africa and subsequent Jim Crow laws), we are a country based upon principles, those captured in the second sentence of the Declaration of Independence. "We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights,
that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."
To affirm this does not depend upon race, ethnicity, religion etc. People really can truly become Americans because they don’t have to be anything in particular. And when one becomes an American, that person is as American as someone whose ancestors may have come over on the Mayflower.
So the question is how people who immigrated here come to be truly American, beyond getting passports and beyond attaining citizenship. This is different than in other countries. Can you really become Greek, for example, or Chinese by emigrating and becoming citizens of their countries?
One becomes American by developing gratitude for the freedom, the opportunity, the liberty and the security that America provides. One develops an appreciation for and belief in the goodness of American ideals, as expressed in the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution of the United States. From this there arises an aspiration to become a citizen and a willingness to shoulder the responsibilities of a citizen. And beyond this aspiration, to not only become a citizen but to make great sacrifices for the nation.
Nevertheless, almost all immigrants came here not for some abstract belief in our principles, but because they were fleeing something. George used his family’s arrival in West Virgina as a paradigm for how people become Americans.
George’s paternal Syrian grandfather fled religious persecution, while his maternal Italian grandfather fled wrenching poverty in southern Italy. They both ended up in West Virgina working on the railroad and in back-breaking jobs in the coal mines. They had pride in being citizens, they took pride in voting. And both grandfathers were patriotic. They appreciated the opportunity that America had provided their families. They did not come here for some abstract commitment to American political beliefs. They were simply fleeing something bad.
Four of the five sons of his paternal grandfather and the only son of his maternal grandfather served in combat during World War II. It never occurred to the Italian clan they would favor Italy over the United States. There was no doubt as to where their loyalties lay. And, as soldiers, they could well have been called upon to give what President Lincoln called “the last full measure of devotion.”
What about the American Protestant worry that Jews or Catholics might have divided loyalties? Might they find some conflicts between what their faiths would demand and what our country demanded of them? In retrospect this was not a concern. They were loyal Americans.
George emphasized the gratitude that these immigrants felt for the opportunity that America had afforded them and the opportunity that America provided for their children and grandchildren to gradually move up the social and economic ladder. While they suffered during the Depression and were at some points unemployed, as were so many others, they did not blame America and simply yearned to return to work. And though they experienced discrimination, they viewed this as an aberration, not at all reflective of the America they loved.
One touching story George told was of the first in the family to graduate from college and then law school, his grandfather’s sister’s son John. While his grandparents’ generation spoke broken English and only one could read and write in English, when John graduated from law school his mother stopped to kiss every step leading up to the law school building. Her son, the new graduate, admonished his mother saying “Mom, cut it out. You’re acting like an immigrant.”
George touched gingerly and quickly on the plight of those West Virginians whose families had been here for many generations and who were falling behind and becoming welfare dependent. This has had a destructive effect on non-immigrant West Virginia families even as immigrant families were moving ahead and has led to resentment as they see others moving ahead as they are moving backwards.
In summary, George noted that the practice of transmitting our civic culture is embodied in the important ideas of America. Immigrants are, he believes, a great strength to America. Discussions about whether multiculturism is good or bad are often jeopardized by different definitions of the term and an inability on the part of the participants to truly listen and not talk past each other.
America, George says, is based on limited government, equality of opportunity, morally ordered liberty, private property, economic freedom, and the rule of law. Efforts to live up to these principles make us a great people and is why we are a magnet for people all over the world. Furthermore, maintenance of our civic culture is the task of everyone.
Respectfully submitted,
Stephen Silverman