--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My people are Americans. My time is today." description: "\"My people are Americans. My time is today.\" — George Gershwin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adb/george-gershwin-16455_america_my-people-are-americans-my-time-is-today_1900454.png" --- # My people are Americans. My time is today. ![“My people are Americans. My time is today.” quote by George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adb/george-gershwin-16455_america_my-people-are-americans-my-time-is-today_1900454.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adb/george-gershwin-16455_america_my-people-are-americans-my-time-is-today_1900454.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/adb/george-gershwin-16455_america_my-people-are-americans-my-time-is-today_1900454.png) > “My people are Americans. My time is today.” [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker asserts a collective identity and urgency, emphasizing present action. **In simple terms:** We are Americans and must act now. Key Takeaway Act now with collective purpose. Themes identity nationalism urgency action Mood determined urgent Type political motivational When to use this quote - voting - community organizing - activism - public speaking - policy advocacy Key Concepts political rhetoric social mobilization Questions to Reflect On - How can we honor shared identity while respecting differences? - What immediate actions reflect today’s urgency? A Different Perspective May overlook diverse perspectives within a nation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Americans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americans/) [Americans Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/americans-time-293687/) [My time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-time/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Americans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-americans-237754/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-today-246937/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) ## Related quotes > [True music must repeat the thought and inspirations of the people and the time. My people are Americans and my time is today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/true-music-must-repeat-the-thought-and-inspirations-of-the-people-and/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [ “To Americans, time always sounds like a parade chez vous \[at your house\], a triumphant parade, like armies with banners entering a town .… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/to-americans-time-always-sounds-like-a-parade-chez-vous-at-your-house/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“People – Americans, mostly – realise how attached they are to material comforts when they arrive in India.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-william-roberts/people-americans-mostly-realise-how-attached-they-are-to-material/) [Paul William Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-william-roberts/) > [We have to be concerned about the gun killing that people who are Americans, who are Irish, and who are English, who are all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalia-mogahed/we-have-to-be-concerned-about-the-gun-killing-that-people-who-are/) [Dalia Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalia-mogahed/) > [Don't you think that as a people, Americans have less poetry, real poetry, in their souls than any other nations?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-howard/don-t-you-think-that-as-a-people-americans-have-less-poetry-real/) [Robert E. Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-howard/) > [Time is a player. Time is part of today, not simply a measure of its passing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/time-is-a-player-time-is-part-of-today-not-simply-a-measure-of-its/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Life at its essence boils down to one day at a time. Today is the day!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-stovall/life-at-its-essence-boils-down-to-one-day-at-a-time-today-is-the-day/) [Jim Stovall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-stovall/) > [There is no word for time. Today we will not think to number another summer or watch its white bird into the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/there-is-no-word-for-time-today-we-will-not-think-to-number-another/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Now is the time to make good use of time. Today is the day to begin a perfect day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-chinmoy/now-is-the-time-to-make-good-use-of-time-today-is-the-day-to-begin-a/) [Sri Chinmoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-chinmoy/) > [“afternoon. I don’t have time for that today.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamie-dearen/afternoon-i-don-t-have-time-for-that-today/) [Tamie Dearen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamie-dearen/) > [“Tomorrow will be more hopeful than this awful piece of time we call today”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/tomorrow-will-be-more-hopeful-than-this-awful-piece-of-time-we-call/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“TIME: Today Is My Everything”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie-norton/time-today-is-my-everything/) [Richie Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie-norton/) > [“How can I honor God in the way I use my time today?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ava-pennington/how-can-i-honor-god-in-the-way-i-use-my-time-today/) [Ava Pennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ava-pennington/) > [I beg young people to travel. If you don't have a passport, get one….the re are lessons that you can't get out of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-beg-young-people-to-travel-if-you-don-t-have-a-passport-get-one-the/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [But this is predicated upon the man's becoming in very fact an American and nothing but an American. If he tries to keep segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/but-this-is-predicated-upon-the-man-s-becoming-in-very-fact-an/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) ## More by George Gershwin > [True music must repeat the thought and inspirations of the people and the time. My people are Americans and my time is today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/true-music-must-repeat-the-thought-and-inspirations-of-the-people-and/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [The extraordinary thing about my mother, she's so modest about me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/the-extraordinary-thing-about-my-mother-she-s-so-modest-about-me/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [Porgy is...an interesting example of what can be done by talent in spite of a bad setup. With a libretto that should never have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/porgy-is-an-interesting-example-of-what-can-be-done-by-talent-in/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [Gershwin's melodic gift was phenomenal. His songs contain the essence of New York in the 1920s and have deservedly become classics of their kind,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/gershwin-s-melodic-gift-was-phenomenal-his-songs-contain-the-essence/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [Not many composers have ideas. Far more of them know how to use strange instruments which do not require ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/not-many-composers-have-ideas-far-more-of-them-know-how-to-use/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [Life is a lot like jazz... it's best when you improvise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/life-is-a-lot-like-jazz-it-s-best-when-you-improvise/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [I didn't even start playing the piano until I was about 13 or 14. I guess I must have had a little talent or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/i-didn-t-even-start-playing-the-piano-until-i-was-about-13-or-14-i/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [Jazz I regard as an American folk music; not the only one, but a very powerful one which is probably in the blood and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/jazz-i-regard-as-an-american-folk-music-not-the-only-one-but-a-very/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [Out of my entire annual output of songs, perhaps two, or at the most three, came as a result of inspiration. We can never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/out-of-my-entire-annual-output-of-songs-perhaps-two-or-at-the-most/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [An entire composition written in jazz could not live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/an-entire-composition-written-in-jazz-could-not-live/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [I frequently hear music in the heart of noise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/i-frequently-hear-music-in-the-heart-of-noise/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [True music must repeat the thought and inspirations of the people and the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/true-music-must-repeat-the-thought-and-inspirations-of-the-people-and-2/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [It is always possible to create something original.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/it-is-always-possible-to-create-something-original/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [The European boys have small ideas but they sure know how to dress 'em up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/the-european-boys-have-small-ideas-but-they-sure-know-how-to-dress-em/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) > [Jazz is the result of the energy stored up in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gershwin/jazz-is-the-result-of-the-energy-stored-up-in-america/) [George Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) [Explore all 39 George Gershwin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gershwin/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. 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