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DOCTOR’S CORNER

VALUING

AMERICA’S

MINORITY MAJORITY

by Allen Weiss, MD, MBA, FACP, FACR
President and CEO, NCH Healthcare System
U nless you are a native born American generation upon generation on the shoulders of

others from elsewhere.
Indian, you are either an immigrant or
descended from immigrants. One out
Famous immigrations to America started in
of every three Americans came through
Ellis Island. Unfortunately, many of us do not 1620 with about one hundred Pilgrims who were
escaping religious persecution. From 1619 to the
remember, value, or honor our rich heritage, which mid-1800s, Blacks from Africa arrived against their
is adversely impacted by the stress, speed, and wills, ultimately resulting in monumental suffering
isolation of today’s modern society. and subsequently splitting the nation with our Civil
What is our identity? How do we define War. No one ever wants to experience the horror
American? Having uncomfortable conversations of brother fighting against brother or as Lincoln
about the realization that over fifty percent of our definitively stated, “A house divided against itself
nation will be minorities by 2025 was addressed cannot stand.” We never again want to have anything
by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jose Antonio like the suffering leading up to the Civil War or the
Vargas. He was a keynote speaker at the annual war itself.
Leadership Florida meeting that I was recently Additional massive migrations of our ancestors came
privileged to attend. from northern Europe due to famine during the mid-
More importantly, how can we together 1800s. About one-third of immigrants in this period
maximize the power, diversity, culture, richness, came from Ireland alone, constituting 4.5 million, settling
and economic advantage of being a welcoming mostly along the East Coast and still contributing
nation? After all, America’s success was built mightily to the cultural richness of these cities.

46 Life in Naples | November 2017