It might be a cliche, but I believe I have opened a can of worms - and a big one at that.
For this reason, I want to expand on the topic of American identity.
According to the Mexican constitution, the official name of Mexico is The United Mexican States - the "of America" is implied.
This only strengthens my argument that the United States has taken the name "America" as its own, and in Mexico, it has disintegrated.
On the other hand, although the official name in the U.S. Constitution is The United States of America, many times our country foregoes the word "America." For example, the official seal of the president says "The President of the United States" and leaves out "of America."
One problem that arises is many people categorize Mexico as part of Latin America. At one time, this separation truly did exist. The lands colonized by Spain were considered Latin America, while the territory of the present-day United States was considered Anglo-Saxon America because people from England arrived there to establish the first 13 colonies.
By way of culture, religion, language and history, Mexico is still a part of the Latin sector.
However, geographically, Mexico is closely tied to North America, according to the CIA World Factbook. Despite that connection, a long-standing cultural division seems to be keeping it from its American status.
Historically, though, this was not always the case.
Around 1813, during the country's fight for independence from Spanish rule, Jose Mar+â-â-¡a Morelos wrote "Sentimientos de la Naci+â-â-¦n" ("Feelings of the Nation") and drafted the "Decreto Constitucional para la Libertad de la America Mexicana" ("The Constitutional Decree for the Liberty of Mexican America"). Morelos wanted a federal republic and became a hero to his people in the fight for Mexico's independence. He was born in Valladolid, which is today called Morelia in his honor.
Morelos wrote (originally in Spanish), "America is free and independent of Spain and of any other nation, government or monarchy."
He spoke of America as a whole, including the territories of today's United States and United Mexican States.
Both Mexico and the United States are federal republics, according to the CIA World Factbook. The Mexican constitution was even based partially on the U.S. constitution, as it was developed later. Just as in the United States, Mexico has a separation of powers with executive, legislative and judicial branches.
Perhaps this the reason both nations use "United States" in their names.
Now, let's take a look at Europe for a minute. In France, Italy and Germany, people are by majority given the titles French, Italian and German. But when these three countries are grouped together, the people are considered "Europeans," along with the rest of the continent of Europe.
And so who is the true "American"? What about the rest of our neighbors on this continent? It seems this topic could be debated for eternity.
And with that, I close my can, and ask that you also think about your identity as an "American."
Write to Michelle at mllong2@bsu.edu
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