Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Mrs. Ralph Sanger
Theodore Roosevelt will not sign and does not agree with the appeal calling for Americans to call themselves Anglo-Americans and sympathize with England as the motherland. Roosevelt believes Americans are a separate people and should view the United States as their motherland. He is not an “Englishman-once-removed” but is “straight United States.” A foreign nation should be treated according to its conduct and not influenced by a shared ethnic heritage. Roosevelt has publicly supported Belgium, which includes admonishing Germany for its conduct and praising England for defending an ally. However, he did so because it was morally right and not due to a shared “ground of community of origin” between the United States and England.
Collection
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
Creation Date
1914-12-22