Kultur 1

When I first read the title of this article, I was very confused. I did'nt understand how German could be American. As I read on, I understood what the author mean't and was very suprised to learn about all of the things that Germans did once they came over to America. From the information presented, it seemed like the Germans that came over were the ones that really leaded and pushed America forward to help us grow as a nation. They bought lots of land and began farming, they opened clubs and businesses, and they were some of the first people that opposed ideas such as slavery. It seems like the Germans were the ones that opened America up to a whole new world where things didn't have to be just like England, as our country had been replacated from. Another part of the article I found was interesting was the census. The fact that many German decendants are now just referring to themselves as Americans is both a good thing and a bad thing. One the one hand, it shows that they truly feel that they belong in America and consider themselves more American than German, or they might not even know that they are of German descent, but on the other hand, it shows that they are slowly conforming and losing their German culture and heritage that their ancestors had brought to America and used to open our country to a new culture that helped America grow and prosper. Their progressive ideas contributed to the success and popularity that is now thought of as American, not German. Overall, I liked this article because it really showed how much influence the German people have had on America and how we, as Americans, take for granted how much other countries have contributed to our culture or as we like to call it, our melting pot.