--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whether our ancestors came here on the…" description: "\"Whether our ancestors came here on the Mayflower, on slave ships, whether they came to Ellis Island or LAX in Los Angeles, whether they came yesterday ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/william-j-clinton-302_21st-century_whether-our-ancestors-came-here-on-the-m_2901608.jpg" --- # Whether our ancestors came here on the Mayflower, on slave… ![“Whether our ancestors came here on the Mayflower, on slave ships, whether they came to Ellis Island or LAX in Los Angeles, whether they came yesterday or walked this land a thousand years ago our great challenge for the 21st century is to find a way to be One America. We can meet all the other…” quote by William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/william-j-clinton-302_21st-century_whether-our-ancestors-came-here-on-the-m_2901608.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/william-j-clinton-302_21st-century_whether-our-ancestors-came-here-on-the-m_2901608.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d74/william-j-clinton-302_21st-century_whether-our-ancestors-came-here-on-the-m_2901608.jpg) > “Whether our ancestors came here on the Mayflower, on slave ships, whether they came to Ellis Island or LAX in Los Angeles, whether they came yesterday or walked this land a thousand years ago our great challenge for the 21st century is to find a way to be One America. We can meet all the other challenges if we can go forward as One America.” [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. America must unite as one, transcending diverse origins, to meet 21st‑century challenges. **In simple terms:** Seek national unity across histories. Key Takeaway Promote inclusive policies and shared identity. Themes unity diversity future challenges Mood inspirational optimistic Type political social When to use this quote - policy making - community building - education - media narratives Key Concepts national identity social cohesion Questions to Reflect On - How to ensure unity respects diversity? - What mechanisms protect marginalized groups? A Different Perspective Counterpoint: Unity can suppress minority voices if not inclusive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Ancestor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancestor/) [Challenges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/challenges/) [Ellis island](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ellis-island/) [Islands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/islands/) [Los angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/los-angeles/) [Mayflower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mayflower/) [Slave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave/) [Slave ships](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slave-ships/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) [Yesterday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yesterday/) ## Related quotes > [One of our ancestors came over on the Mayflower, and we had family in Jamestown as well... I was raised where service was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-daines/one-of-our-ancestors-came-over-on-the-mayflower-and-we-had-family-in/) [Steve Daines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-daines/) > [Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there. My folks were Indian. Both my mother and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/even-if-you-re-on-the-right-track-you-ll-get-run-over-if-you-just-sit/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [The Islamic community today is faced with a new version of an old struggle. My late mother used to say it doesn't matter whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-moseley-braun/the-islamic-community-today-is-faced-with-a-new-version-of-an-old/) [Carol Moseley Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-moseley-braun/) > [“But know this America: we will meet them”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/but-know-this-america-we-will-meet-them/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Hip hop is the way it is because of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dizzee-rascal/hip-hop-is-the-way-it-is-because-of-america/) [Dizzee Rascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dizzee-rascal/) > [My father gave me an old Olympia portable when I was in fourth grade. Our ancestors came from Ireland. Our family stories of immigration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luanne-rice/my-father-gave-me-an-old-olympia-portable-when-i-was-in-fourth-grade/) [Luanne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luanne-rice/) > [“I am the now of the then. My body is the embodiment of all my ancestors who came before me. They live on in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-am-the-now-of-the-then-my-body-is-the-embodiment-of-all-my/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [All the scars on my body, all the bumps and bruises, all the muscles - that is a story of everything I have done.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-namajunas/all-the-scars-on-my-body-all-the-bumps-and-bruises-all-the-muscles/) [Rose Namajunas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-namajunas/) > [In a sense, all Americans are battle-born. Our ancestors came here for something better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-flowers/in-a-sense-all-americans-are-battle-born-our-ancestors-came-here-for/) [Brandon Flowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-flowers/) > [ Your ancestors came to Macedonia and the rest of Hellas \[Greece\] and did us great harm, though we had done them no prior injury.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/your-ancestors-came-to-macedonia-and-the-rest-of-hellas-greece-and/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [My parents came to America in the late 1960s because my father studied for a Ph.D. in Indiana. My mother joined him later. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/my-parents-came-to-america-in-the-late-1960s-because-my-father/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [There is no moral high ground from which President Trump or any of his followers can tell anyone to leave this country, because they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deb-haaland/there-is-no-moral-high-ground-from-which-president-trump-or-any-of/) [Deb Haaland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deb-haaland/) > [My ancestors came from Co Roscommon, transported to Van Diemen's Land for stealing food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/my-ancestors-came-from-co-roscommon-transported-to-van-diemen-s-land/) [Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/) > [I, too, am convinced that our ancestors came from Africa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/i-too-am-convinced-that-our-ancestors-came-from-africa/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [My ancestors came over from Germany about the time of the Civil War and one of them lost a leg and went back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/my-ancestors-came-over-from-germany-about-the-time-of-the-civil-war/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) ## More by William J. Clinton > [When personal freedom's being abused, you have to move to limit it. That's what we did in the announcement I made last weekend on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/when-personal-freedom-s-being-abused-you-have-to-move-to-limit-it/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Almost makes you want to go to jail out here, doesn't it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/almost-makes-you-want-to-go-to-jail-out-here-doesn-t-it/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [I take full responsability...for what we did. It was the right thing to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/i-take-full-responsability-for-what-we-did-it-was-the-right-thing-to/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Even as people take pride in their national independence, we know we are becoming more and more interdependent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/even-as-people-take-pride-in-their-national-independence-we-know-we/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [To build a twenty-first-century economy, America must revive a nineteenth-century habit--investing in the common, national economic resources that enable every person and every firm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/to-build-a-twenty-first-century-economy-america-must-revive-a/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [One of the things that I think we have learned is that we should all be very careful about making predictions about the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/one-of-the-things-that-i-think-we-have-learned-is-that-we-should-all/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Only astrophysicists new about the Internet 20 years ago. Today my cat has a website.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/only-astrophysicists-new-about-the-internet-20-years-ago-today-my-cat/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [Our military superiority is so great - it's far greater than it was in the Gulf War, and the Gulf War was over in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/our-military-superiority-is-so-great-it-s-far-greater-than-it-was-in/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [You know, I've always been really interested in this stuff, and I'm going to read this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/you-know-i-ve-always-been-really-interested-in-this-stuff-and-i-m/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [If you believe in making change from the bottom up, if you believe the measure of change is how many people's lives are better,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/if-you-believe-in-making-change-from-the-bottom-up-if-you-believe-the/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [ We \[Democrats\] have got to be strong. When we look weak in a time where people feel insecure, we lose. when people feel uncertain,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/we-democrats-have-got-to-be-strong-when-we-look-weak-in-a-time-where/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [It's the economy, stupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/it-s-the-economy-stupid/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The Republicans could mess up a two car parade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/the-republicans-could-mess-up-a-two-car-parade/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [We're all in this together is a far better philosophy than you're on your own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/we-re-all-in-this-together-is-a-far-better-philosophy-than-you-re-on/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) [Explore all 712 William J. Clinton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) ## More 21st century quotes > [The young people today are the 21st century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-scorsese/the-young-people-today-are-the-21st-century/) [Martin Scorsese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-scorsese/) > [“You know it’s the 21st Century when someone TEXTS you from the washroom to ask you to bring them a roll of toilet paper.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comic-strip-mama/you-know-it-s-the-21st-century-when-someone-texts-you-from-the/) Comic Strip Mama > [“I am made of a thousand ghosts. Only you can shoot me down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-james/i-am-made-of-a-thousand-ghosts-only-you-can-shoot-me-down/) Bella James > [Like many others, I have deep misgivings about the state of education in the United States. Too many of our students fail to graduate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/like-many-others-i-have-deep-misgivings-about-the-state-of-education/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Maybe we need a tax credit for the poorest Americans to buy a laptop. Now, maybe that's wrong, maybe that's expensive, maybe we can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/maybe-we-need-a-tax-credit-for-the-poorest-americans-to-buy-a-laptop/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [The 20th century has been marked by cynicism, selfishness, greed, and the desire to please, all without changing the status quo. In the 21st…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scar-arias/the-20th-century-has-been-marked-by-cynicism-selfishness-greed-and/) [Óscar Arias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scar-arias/) > [I firmly believe that the mission of religion in the 21st century must be to contribute concretely to the peaceful coexistence of humankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/i-firmly-believe-that-the-mission-of-religion-in-the-21st-century/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Facebook, Twitter...Welcome to The 21st Century...Where Someone can stalk you without leaving the couch!..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/facebook-twitter-welcome-to-the-21st-century-where-someone-can-stalk/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Human Race is all over universe! And I am the first person to inform you. I am the most influential person of this decade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwani-kumar-ojha/human-race-is-all-over-universe-and-i-am-the-first-person-to-inform/) [Ashwani Kumar Ojha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwani-kumar-ojha/) > [Like the railroads that brought us together in the 19th century, these trails will bring us together in the 20th and 21st centuries. (at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/like-the-railroads-that-brought-us-together-in-the-19th-century-these/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [What I love about making albums in the 21st century is that so few people buy albums! I can make an album without any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/what-i-love-about-making-albums-in-the-21st-century-is-that-so-few/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [As a former Apollo astronaut, I think it's safe to say that SpaceX and the other commercial developers embody the 21st century version of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rusty-schweickart/as-a-former-apollo-astronaut-i-think-it-s-safe-to-say-that-spacex-and/) [Rusty Schweickart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rusty-schweickart/) > [The computer provides the only way to give students a real foundation in 21st-century skills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-negroponte/the-computer-provides-the-only-way-to-give-students-a-real-foundation/) [Nicholas Negroponte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-negroponte/) Browse all 771 21st century quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whether our ancestors came here on the Mayflower, on slave ships, whether they came to Ellis Island or LAX in Los Angeles, whether they came yesterday or walked this land a thousand years ago our great challenge for the 21st century is to find a way to be One America. 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