David Levering Lewis Quotes

My folks came to U.S. as immigrants, aliens, and became citizens. I was born in Boston, a citizen, went to Hollywood and became an alien.

The conventional wisdom is that people come to the United States, and immigration is so great, and they say, 'America, what a great country.' And a lot of that is true.

As you know, I'm an immigrant. I came over here as an immigrant, and what gave me the opportunities, what made me to be here today, is the open arms of Americans. I have been received. I have been adopted by America.

We are, of course, a nation of immigrants, but some of us too often forget that fact. Sometimes we forget that the question isn't when we came here, but why we came here.

When you come to America, you get to become an American, and Trump, who has grandparents who came to the U.S., should understand this as much as anybody.

America is always attracting people, from all over the earth.

We need to remain a nation that doesn't just welcome but that celebrates legal immigrants who come here seeking to pursue the American Dream.

I've always loved New York City and the idea of a cultural exchange: the immigrants coming to America.

I never thought that I would come to live in the United States. I was not pursuing the American dream.

You know that American dream and American spirit of innovation we always talk about? Turns out, the bulk of it was built by people who came to America from somewhere else, not people born American. We have no birthright or natural lock on these things.

Both my parents were immigrants, as were many of their friends, the parents of the children with whom I grew up. Of course I respect and admire immigrants and their undeniable contributions to America, as we all should.

When I came to America in the '60s, it was the place to be. I wonder if I'd come here today.

America was born as a nation of immigrants who have always contributed to its greatness.

As you watch 'Documented' on CNN, I ask you, my fellow Americans: What do you want to do with me? What do you want to do with us? How do you define American?

Considering our history, I can think of nothing more American than an immigrant.

To be able to live and work in the United States is a privilege.

Of course, everyone in the New World is an immigrant or a descendant of immigrants, and immigrants have built America and continue to do so. Legal or illegal, they are almost universally good people who work to better their lot and that of their children.

America is made up of people who came from someplace else. Even the Native Americans came over the Bering strait... America is what it is because people came from someplace else.

The laws should be rigidly enforced which prohibit the immigration of a servile class to compete with American labor, with no intention of acquiring citizenship, and bringing with them and retaining habits and customs repugnant to our civilization.

Little America

The United States has always been energized by its immigrant populations. America has constantly drawn strength and spirit from wave after wave of immigrants ... They have proved to be the most restless, the most adventurous, the most innovative, the most industrious of people.

The Melting Pot

My whole family has been having trouble with immigrants ever since we came to this country.

I'm first-generation American - my people came over on boats - and I think it's a shame to close the door on people who really need freedom.

I'm just trying the American dream. To work here in the U.S., you have to commit and be here. For many years, it was back and forth, back and forth, and it didn't work. But I'm always open to working in Spanish.