I have always taken offense to people born in the USA putting their ancestral ethnicity in front of American. If your people from 250 years ago came from, let's just use Italy, you are not an Italian American. You are an American Italian. Born in America makes you American. If that person goes into the military it's to defend America, not Italy.

But also know that I think "proud" is a stupid word. When people say "I'm proud of my Mexican roots." I ask "Why?" You are proud to come from one of the dirtiest, nastiest places on the planet that is so corrupt and disgusting that Mexicans are willing to risk death and imprisonment to escape from there at any cost? What is there to be proud of? And what does proud even mean?

When I was young, I was a really good baseball player. Colleges were recruiting me (until they saw my grades) so pro teams came to visit me. The whole time my father wanted to be overly involved because he was "proud" of his little boy. And one day in front of a recruiter it came to a head when I told him "Why don't you leave the room? This doesn't involve you. What is it the YOU are proud of? Because I worked so hard to get to this place? This is my life and my decision. Take your proud talk somewhere else." He didn't run all those miles. He didn't lift those weights. He didn't take all that extra batting practice. I worked one summer on a garbage truck for $2.20 an hour because that was 5 hours every day lifting full trash cans and dumping them onto the truck. My chest and shoulders were never stronger. I did all of that. "Proud" is just a stupid concept. In any context. Be happy for someone else's success. And yes, you could say "proud" is exactly that, but it goes deeper. So to be "proud" of heritage.... Are Germans proud of a heritage that includes Adolph Hitler? If you are American, be American. Just American. I am interested in my heritage, but proud? Why? What did Yugoslavia do that evokes any sense of pride? Send us a really bad car in the early 80s? I want to go see the country, yes. It's a beautiful place. Ljubljana Castle in particular. But proud to be descended from Slovenian grandparents, 3 of whom I didn't know? Why?

Wow was THAT a tangent!