America is a nation composed of musicians, athletes and scholars.
America is a nation composed of actors, writers and politicians.
America is a nation composed of family, friends, and individuals.
DIFFERENT:
Within the quilt that is America there are many differences among us. Some of us are short while others are tall. Some of us are strong in physical prowess while others are weak. Some of us come from distant lands while others are born here. And yes, some of us are straight while others are gay. The point is simple there are many different Americans.
DIVIDED:
Race...Race has divided us for as along as America has been a country. For over 200 years, we have been at war with ourselves over the same fundamental issue. Crackers are better than Niggers. Niggers are better than chinks. Chinks are better than japs. A Jap is better than a Pollock.
Religion...Even within religion there are divisions. Within Christianity for example, there Methodist, Baptist, Episcopalian, Pentecostal, Mormons and Catholicism. How many times have you heard "Christians" say that "Baptist" are too loose, to party hungry and void of value. How many times have you heard "Christians" call "Mormons" a cult. How many times have you heard "Christians" say that the "Catholic" church is corrupt, to reliant on idols and patrons, and that the pope is a crock. All of these divisions stem from the same book, the Bible.
Different - Divided = United
There is nothing wrong with being different. If we all weren't different from one another then the very concept of individualism would not exist. There will always be differences among our people, among nations, among religions. These differences allows us the freedom to be more creative, to evolve beyond our own prejudices and misunderstandings.
There is everything wrong with division. We cannot move beyond our own transgressions, mistakes, prejudices and hatred if we are still divided as individuals and subsequently as a nation. Many of us come from different places: America, Mexico, Canada, U.K, Australia, China, Japan, Russia and etc. Many of us having varying ethnicity. Why do we have to continually put each other down to make ourselves feel better. No one race is superior to another race and until we finally grasp that concept, we will never move on from our past.
I personally believe that there is a difference between God and religion. I view God has something greater than myself. A concept that is beyond my comprehension. I believe that we are all on this world for a reason, that our being alive is no mistake. But when it comes to religion that is a different case. Religion to me is a man-made belief system. Religion is a cultural phenomena. For instance, if I was born in the middle east I would most likely associate myself with Islam rather than Christianity, and vice versa. I believe religion is a coping technique designed for us to somehow cope with the fact that there exist something greater than our understanding; but if we follow the rules, laws and customs of this particular religion than our God will not punish us. For some reason, people have a very hard time grasping that idea. I believe in God or the concept of God, but I do not belong to any one religion because in my mind religion is what divides us all. Think about it, how many wars have been waged in the name of religion. How much blood has been spilled in the name of religion. Its almost retarded to think that my religion is superior to your religion because no matter what book you may read or idol you may praise you still cant prove anything. So its belief that makes religion work, if you believe with all your heart that your religion is the "one true religion", what gives you the right to condemn another person who believes the exact same thing for their religion. Its like a perpetual cyclical system, its never going to end.
We have to remove division from our lives. We can be different without being divided. Yes We Can.