Dan Cwiak Poet Rhyme

Immigrants

There has been such a backlash against immigrants
that I decided I would put out a thought.  
Do we remember the immigrants
Who for our country fought?

Starting with our revolution
when this country was born in 1776.
There were immigrants who fought by our side
Von Steuben, Kosciuszko, and Pulaski were among the mix.

What have they done since then you ask,
to keep our country great ?
There are those who battled oppression with us
even up to the present date.
 
I do not know of particulars in 1812
or even in WW I.
But if immigrants didn't fight for us
They joined the 'Melting Pot' that eventually made us one.

WW II is another chapter
of immigrant oppression we let go awry.
How long could we have fought that war
Had the Nisei not gone to Italy?

I have had great kindness in my life
by two different immigrant cultures shown.
One was Puerto Rican;  the other Chinese 
who accepted me as one of their own.

It was more than kindness.
It was a true caring and love in their way.
One gave me the confidence to move ahead in life
The other became my family.

Without the strength of these diverse immigrants in my life
I don't know where I might have gone.
I would certainly not be here writing
but somewhere else...lost and alone.

So when I hear people loudly rail
about an "Immigrant Crisis of State",
Remember, We all came from roots elsewhere
This is what makes our country Great!

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Dan Cwiak October 3, 2015 at 1:24 PM Thanks, CayCay. Not Chinese...Polish. It's pronounced CHVEEOCK in Polish, but we say but we say SWEEAK. Interesting that you should think it Chinese...my wife is 1st Generation Chinese. Again, thanks for the reading and comments. Dan

CayCay Godwin October 3, 2015 at 8:15 AM USA is nothing if not a country of immigrants. Other than Native Americans (another topic) we are all here because of our immigrant ancestors. You expressed this well and I enjoyed the read. I've often wondered at your last name, is it Chinese? How do you pronounce it? I thought maybe 'quick'. Truly a current topic well written about ... CayCay