Immigration without Assimilation is a Threat to National Identity
Why Assimilation Must Anchor American Immigration Policy
America has always been a land of immigrants, but more importantly, a land of Americans. The difference between the two lies not in birthplace, but in belief. We are a nation defined not by bloodline, but by creed. To become American is to embrace the Constitution, to honor liberty, to cherish individual responsibility, and to believe that freedom is worth defending at any cost. Yet today, this sacred process of transformation, assimilation, has been abandoned, dismissed, or even condemned as outdated or oppressive.
But make no mistake: assimilation is not cruelty; it is coherence and in the current political climate, it is absolutely crucial. Without it, the American experiment, the world’s greatest force for freedom, will not survive.
The Truth About Assimilation
Assimilation is not about uniformity of culture; it’s about unity of conviction. It is the process by which people from every corner of the earth adopt the ideals that make America exceptional: liberty under law, equality before God and government, self-governance, and personal responsibility.
When I immigrated to the United States, it was my honor assimilate to the American way of life by learning her story, honoring her sacrifices, and carrying forward her ideals. I did not endeavor to forget who I was, but understood that by coming here it was my responsibility to become part of something greater than myself. That is the essence of assimilation: not losing identity, but finding a new one rooted in shared values.
Yet today, that expectation has been quietly retired. In the name of “multiculturalism,” many have substituted celebration of difference for commitment to unity. We have communities that live as though the borders they crossed were merely geographic, not ideological. We see towns where American law is secondary to tribal customs, and neighborhoods where the English language and American civic ideals are regarded as foreign intrusions.
And as these pockets grow in influence, we face a danger deeper than mere division, we face the importation of foreign ideologies that threaten the very core of American freedom.
The Lessons from Across the Atlantic
If you want to see the outcome of immigration without assimilation, look no further than the United Kingdom. Once a bastion of liberty and moral courage, Britain now finds itself struggling to hold together under the weight of cultural fragmentation. In some regions, Muslim migrants have established enclaves where local leaders have attempted to impose Sharia law, undermining the nation’s democratic institutions and centuries-old legal traditions.
It has gone so far that ordinary Britons are told not to display their own flag, lest it offend newcomers. Think about that: the very symbol of national unity, reduced to a provocation. This is not tolerance, it is surrender.
If America follows the same path, if we allow pockets of foreign ideologies to take root and grow unchecked, we will lose not only our identity but also our moral authority in the world. We will cease to be the shining city on a hill and become instead a patchwork of competing loyalties, divided by culture, language, and law.
The Fragility of Freedom
We must never assume that America’s greatness is self-sustaining. Our belief that we are the greatest country on earth is justified but it is not guaranteed. Freedom, like faith, must be nurtured. The Constitution, like character, must be taught. And Americanism, like truth, must be defended against decay.
A nation is not just its land; it is its laws, its language, and its values. When immigrants come to this country, they come seeking opportunity. But opportunity without orientation is chaos. We must teach every new citizen not only how to succeed in America, but why America is worth succeeding in.
We must require that every immigrant understand our founding documents, not as relics, but as living guides. They must learn that freedom is not granted by government but endowed by God. They must see that equality is not sameness, but the equal dignity of souls before their Creator. And they must embrace the idea that rights come with responsibilities: to defend liberty, obey the law, and contribute to the community.
Without these anchors, the waves of ideology will sweep us into confusion and conflict.
The Cost of Neglect
Consider what happens when assimilation is neglected. Communities begin to operate under foreign moral codes. Schools hesitate to teach patriotism for fear of offending cultural sensitivities. Public servants shrink from enforcing the law, lest they be accused of bias. And soon, the very idea of being American loses its moral clarity.
This erosion doesn’t happen overnight. It happens slowly, like rot beneath the surface of a great tree. The trunk still stands tall, but its roots are compromised. By the time the storm comes, it is too late.
That storm is already on the horizon. We see it in the growing normalization of socialist rhetoric, in the calls for government dependency over personal responsibility, and in the vilification of faith, family, and freedom.
When we import people who do not share our values, or worse, who reject them, we are not expanding our strength; we are importing our undoing.
A Vision for Renewal
If assimilation is essential, then it must be intentional. It cannot be left to chance or goodwill. America needs a formal assimilation program, a national effort to teach immigrants our history, our Constitution, and our civic values.
This could include:
Civics Education: Mandatory courses on American history, governance, and constitutional rights before citizenship.
Language and Cultural Competency: A firm requirement that all immigrants learn English, not to erase culture, but to build community.
Civic Engagement: Encouraging volunteerism and community service as part of the naturalization process.
Oath Renewal: A clear and solemn reaffirmation that becoming an American means pledging allegiance to this nation, its laws, its flag, and its ideals.
Such measures would not diminish diversity, they would dignify it. They would turn difference into strength by rooting it in common purpose.
Unity Without Uniformity
Let me be clear: assimilation does not mean we all must look alike, cook alike, or worship alike. America’s beauty lies in its symphony of difference, but even a symphony requires harmony. The melody that binds us is not race or ethnicity, it is Americanism.
Immigrants bring their food, their art, their music, and their stories, and we are richer for it. But the unifying bond must be the conviction that freedom is sacred and America is worth defending. Anything less is disloyalty masquerading as diversity.
The Call to Courage
We must stop apologizing for expecting loyalty to this country. We must reject the lie that patriotism is prejudice. And we must remember that citizenship is not a right granted by arrival, but an honor earned by allegiance.
Let us welcome the immigrant, but only those who wish to become Americans in heart, not just in address. Let us teach, not merely tolerate. Let us insist on unity, not surrender to fragmentation. And let us reaffirm the truth that assimilation is not an obstacle to compassion, it is its highest expression. For to invite someone into your home and refuse to teach them how to live within it is not kindness; it is the kind of neglect that, left unchecked, could be the undoing of this great nation.
America is the last, best hope of earth. But hope is fragile when conviction fades. If we are to preserve this great republic, we must guard not just our borders, but our beliefs.
How You Can Help
In this spirit, I invite all those who cherish America’s promise to stand with LIFTRA — Legal Immigrants for the Restoration of America. We are a movement of immigrants who came here legally, embraced this nation wholeheartedly, and now seek to ensure that others do the same.
Our mission is simple but sacred: to teach, inspire, and unite—to help every new American understand that this land’s greatness flows not from government but from God, not from entitlement but from effort, and not from division but from devotion to shared ideals.
LIFTRA will amplify the voices of those who have chosen America—not just as a place to live, but as a cause to defend. Together, we will rekindle the flame of patriotism, restore reverence for the Constitution, and remind this generation that becoming American is not a transaction—it is a transformation.
“A nation without assimilation is a body without a soul—diverse in form, but dead in spirit.” — Alma Ohene-Opare