bharati mukherjee for a rainy day in america [october 2011]

Since it’s #tbt and the news of Justice Kennedy’s retirement in the midst of this crisis due to immigration policy changes forged in hate is enough to make me actively search for anything that will give me some hope for my country to start the day with… I give you this little thought of mine from October 2nd, 2011:

Bharati Mukherjee once said the following in a piece of brilliance that I can no longer remember the name of: “I see American culture as a culture of dreamers, who believe material shape can be given to dreams. They believe that one’s station in life — poverty, education, family background — does not determine one’s fate. They believe in the reversal of omens; early failures do not spell inevitable disaster. Outsiders can triumph on merit. All of this happens against a backdrop of familiar vicissitudes of American life.” Well it’s true. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t.

My takeaway is that at times like this, we must have faith in each other and more importantly in ourselves (then act). The quote is from the essay Beyond Multiculturalism: A Two-Way Transformation (p 293). I urge you to give this piece from our literary giant a read as you consider what immigration means to you and your personal role in transforming America.