the great majority of immigrants—even many of those fleeing persecution, tyranny, or war—made the choice to come to America. They were allowed to keep their languages, their religions, their origin stories, and their symbols. Up to a point, they were permitted to keep their cultures. Although not all were allowed to keep their own names, they all maintained the right to name their children. In contrast, our African American ancestors were kidnapped, sold as property, transplanted here as cargo against their will, given new names and identities, and often not permitted to name or raise their
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