--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In America when someone asks me my…" description: "\"“In America when someone asks me my nationality, I can't just say American. I have to go back generations, elaborate on there in Europe my ancestors we..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/bridget-asher-26789_american_in-america-when-someone-asks-me-my-natio_2125307.jpg" --- # In America when someone asks me my nationality, I can't… ![“In America when someone asks me my nationality, I can't just say American. I have to go back generations, elaborate on there in Europe my ancestors were from. But here, I can just say it, Je suis Americaine. It feels good.” quote by Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/bridget-asher-26789_american_in-america-when-someone-asks-me-my-natio_2125307.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/bridget-asher-26789_american_in-america-when-someone-asks-me-my-natio_2125307.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/bridget-asher-26789_american_in-america-when-someone-asks-me-my-natio_2125307.jpg) > ““In America when someone asks me my nationality, I can't just say American. I have to go back generations, elaborate on there in Europe my ancestors were from. But here, I can just say it, Je suis Americaine. It feels good.”” [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Expressing American identity can be complex, but embracing a broader heritage feels liberating. **In simple terms:** Identity is multifaceted. Key Takeaway Own your full heritage. Themes identity heritage nationalism belonging diversity Mood proud reflective Type cultural personal When to use this quote - family storytelling - public speaking - cultural events Key Concepts cultural studies personal narrative social identity Questions to Reflect On - How does heritage shape your identity? - What does “being American” mean to you? A Different Perspective May face resistance from narrow nationalism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [I feel totally French - I don't feel half-French because of my dual nationality. For me, dual nationality just means I don't deny my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/najat-vallaud-belkacem/i-feel-totally-french-i-don-t-feel-half-french-because-of-my-dual/) [Najat Vallaud-Belkacem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/najat-vallaud-belkacem/) > [If you ask what people say what American cuisine is, they cannot really do it. I don't know what it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-chang/if-you-ask-what-people-say-what-american-cuisine-is-they-cannot/) [David Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-chang/) > [“Now when people ask how I'm doing, I say that, as an American I'm more worried than ever before- but as a person, I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-rodham-clinton/now-when-people-ask-how-i-m-doing-i-say-that-as-an-american-i-m-more-2/) [Hillary Rodham Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-rodham-clinton/) > [Whenever I'm in the U.K., people say I have an American accent. Which is, obviously, funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zedd/whenever-i-m-in-the-u-k-people-say-i-have-an-american-accent-which-is/) [Zedd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zedd/) > [It'd be nice to say that American media doesn't hate this country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-domenech/it-d-be-nice-to-say-that-american-media-doesn-t-hate-this-country/) [Ben Domenech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-domenech/) > [I anticipate the Day when to command Respect in the remotest Regions it will be sufficient to say I am an American.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/i-anticipate-the-day-when-to-command-respect-in-the-remotest-regions-2/) [Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/) > [Now is the moment when we can stand up and say, 'I'm an American. I make my destiny. And we deserve better! My children…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitt-romney/now-is-the-moment-when-we-can-stand-up-and-say-i-m-an-american-i-make/) [Mitt Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitt-romney/) > [I wonder what it means when Americans say I'm an American. In Britain the culture is basically the same from one end of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-mirren/i-wonder-what-it-means-when-americans-say-i-m-an-american-in-britain/) [Helen Mirren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-mirren/) > [I use the phrase "fellow citizen" all the time when referring to the - people always say, "The American people, the American people." I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tavis-smiley/i-use-the-phrase-fellow-citizen-all-the-time-when-referring-to-the/) [Tavis Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tavis-smiley/) > [I've never felt more American than I did when I moved to England. It becomes a real kind of part of your identity: "Oh,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-schnetzer/i-ve-never-felt-more-american-than-i-did-when-i-moved-to-england-it/) [Ben Schnetzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-schnetzer/) > [I would say I was an all-American teenager.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-murphy/i-would-say-i-was-an-all-american-teenager/) [Charlie Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-murphy/) > [When people say that American tennis is dead and things like that, you kind of take it a little personal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-keys/when-people-say-that-american-tennis-is-dead-and-things-like-that-you/) [Madison Keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-keys/) > [I want to say to the American people, we hear you. We will do right by you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/i-want-to-say-to-the-american-people-we-hear-you-we-will-do-right-by/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [I think most British people who say they can do an American accent are so bad at it. I find it excruciating. I find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-atkins/i-think-most-british-people-who-say-they-can-do-an-american-accent/) [Eileen Atkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eileen-atkins/) > [She might be without country, without nation, but inside her there was still a being that could exist and be free, that could simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-maas/she-might-be-without-country-without-nation-but-inside-her-there-was/) [Sharon Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-maas/) ## More by Bridget Asher > [“Children. For all of the times that you miss out on things you'd like to do because of them, there are an equal number…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/children-for-all-of-the-times-that-you-miss-out-on-things-you-d-like/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“I missed my mother and Elysius. It wasn't that I wanted them with me at that very moment. I wanted them in the past.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/i-missed-my-mother-and-elysius-it-wasn-t-that-i-wanted-them-with-me/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“I'd heard about the traffic accidnet on the radio after I'd dropped Abbot off at school. I heard about the accident, that there were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/i-d-heard-about-the-traffic-accidnet-on-the-radio-after-i-d-dropped/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“If fact, she mothers with such patience and grace that she's elegant, timelessly elegant. Ironically enough, one might even say that she has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/if-fact-she-mothers-with-such-patience-and-grace-that-she-s-elegant/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“And there are certain moments in your life when something becomes clear, and other things in the past - things that your mind, unbeknownst…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/and-there-are-certain-moments-in-your-life-when-something-becomes/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“If you let fear make decisions for you, fear will make good decisions - but only for its own sake, not yours. p. 161”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/if-you-let-fear-make-decisions-for-you-fear-will-make-good-decisions/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“It was strange how loud the world was when you weren't filling it up with your own noise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/it-was-strange-how-loud-the-world-was-when-you-weren-t-filling-it-up/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“I'm the kind of Flying Wallenda who prays for a good net. That's all. Just a good net.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/i-m-the-kind-of-flying-wallenda-who-prays-for-a-good-net-that-s-all/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“We were new then, our lives stretched out before us. Our families had let us go. Abbott had yet to find us. For this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/we-were-new-then-our-lives-stretched-out-before-us-our-families-had/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“I love the way the French shove chocolate into everything. It's, like, the best nervous tic ever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/i-love-the-way-the-french-shove-chocolate-into-everything-it-s-like/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“...almost like they had sucked up all the air in the room, and I was left oxygen-deprived. But with Henry, I had air again,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/almost-like-they-had-sucked-up-all-the-air-in-the-room-and-i-was-left/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“Love is infinite. Grief can lead to love. Love can lead to grief. Grief is a love story told backward just as love is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/love-is-infinite-grief-can-lead-to-love-love-can-lead-to-grief-grief/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“This was how the world persisted. The heaviness of despair - how could it exist in the midst of mascara, zippers, brunches ? It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/this-was-how-the-world-persisted-the-heaviness-of-despair-how-could/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“This mountain, the arched back of the earth risen before us, it made me feel humble, like a beggar, just lucky to be here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/this-mountain-the-arched-back-of-the-earth-risen-before-us-it-made-me/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) > [“Me encanta que los franceses le echen chocolate a todo. Es como si tuvieran el mejor tic nervioso del mundo”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bridget-asher/me-encanta-que-los-franceses-le-echen-chocolate-a-todo-es-como-si/) [Bridget Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) [Explore all 19 Bridget Asher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bridget-asher/) ## More American quotes > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [William Maxwell's my favorite North American writer, I think. And an Irish writer who used to write for 'The New Yorker' called Maeve Brennan,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-munro/william-maxwell-s-my-favorite-north-american-writer-i-think-and-an/) [Alice Munro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-munro/) > [I have fallen in love with American names, the sharp names that never get fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/i-have-fallen-in-love-with-american-names-the-sharp-names-that-never/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [I really like a lot of American country stuff, so my music has that influence, but I don't like to be set within a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade-bird/i-really-like-a-lot-of-american-country-stuff-so-my-music-has-that/) [Jade Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade-bird/) > [I certainly don't think that the heirs of the American Revolution were a particularly noble class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-w-brands/i-certainly-don-t-think-that-the-heirs-of-the-american-revolution/) [H. W. Brands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-w-brands/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and employ almost half of the working population. Yet because of their size, they rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-lipinski/small-businesses-are-the-backbone-of-the-american-economy-and-employ/) [Dan Lipinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-lipinski/) > [Although I write in English, and despite the fact that I'm from America, I consider myself an Armenian writer. The words I use are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-saroyan/although-i-write-in-english-and-despite-the-fact-that-i-m-from/) [William Saroyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-saroyan/) > [When we first sold the Wallace and Gromit shorts to America, people suggested we get rid of the strange British accents and put clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-park/when-we-first-sold-the-wallace-and-gromit-shorts-to-america-people/) [Nick Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-park/) > [Firefighters and rescue workers are American superheroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-kennedy/firefighters-and-rescue-workers-are-american-superheroes/) [Kerry Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-kennedy/) > [France has not only built a bureaucratic barrier against American culture, it has constructed a notorious intellectual case against it as well. The French…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-cowen/france-has-not-only-built-a-bureaucratic-barrier-against-american/) [Tyler Cowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-cowen/) > [New York and San Francisco are distinctly different. San Francisco is driving the American media, not New York. You have young, microwaved millionaires and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/new-york-and-san-francisco-are-distinctly-different-san-francisco-is/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [Food as a hobby used to be an elite pastime, and it has become something that is totally ordinary for people of every background.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/food-as-a-hobby-used-to-be-an-elite-pastime-and-it-has-become/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [It's important for American soldiers to be culturally sensitive when deployed in foreign countries. But it's just as important for the U.S. never to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-bauer/it-s-important-for-american-soldiers-to-be-culturally-sensitive-when/) [Gary Bauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-bauer/) Browse all 7,717 American quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In America when someone asks me my nationality, I can't just say American. I have to go back generations, elaborate on there in Europe my ancestors were from. But here, I can just say it, Je suis Americaine. 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