Who is Indian? Who is American?

I came across a blog with an essay on a very relevant subject.

It is called "Why there are no Indians in India." It is about labels and how we see ourselves, in particular about the way India is divided according to location and family and many other identifiers. More division and less unity:

So, who is an Indian? Ask me. I really don’t belong anywhere – including the place where my ancestors lived. At any place in India, wherever I go, my identity and acceptance –and therefore my ability to function as a normal human – seem to hinge on my speaking a particular language, or my belonging to a certain caste, a certain religion, a certain ethnicity. The boundaries of identity that we have been drawing around ourselves seem to be getting tighter and tighter, as we discover reason after reason for some new fissure, a fresh fracture.

It goes on to talk about the way the identity in India is defined by creating an "other." I wonder if that is something that we all do to create a sense of our place in the world. In America it seems more like each person thinks being an American is being whatever he is.

In other words, in India people identify more by their state and their ancestry, for example they will consider themselves Punjabi before considering themselves Indian. It is rare for Americans to identify by their state, even though there is tremendous variety in the American experience in different parts of the country. Instead, someone in Georgia will believe that his experience of America is what being an American is. Likewise, someone in Maine will think that his experience of America is what being an American is. We get into enormous arguments over what being an American is and what showing patriotism is because it is so different in different parts of the country. It's natural for us to think that our way of doing something is the right way, and I work hard to fight against that instinct, to try to see and understand (and respect) the way other people approach things. It's tough.

So really, America is having the opposite issue, that everyone identifies as American and finding a definition of that identity is impossible. Yet it still rests on the "other." For me to believe that my experience of America is the "real America," then I have to believe that people with a different experience are not real Americans and that they are wrong to call themselves that. Pretty silly, really, since all the people I'm speaking of have American citizenship. There really shouldn't be a way to be more or less American than the person next to me who also has American citizenship!

The conclusion of the above article is that it is up to us, not our leaders, to make small changes toward a better future. If we start trying to be kinder, more accepting, and courteous of those around us, we can teach those qualities to the next generation and they might be better than we are and create a happier, more peaceful world. It's a good thought and certainly better than any alternative! I agree with the author that small changes make a difference.

(Edited to Add: I'm not making an argument or a thesis statement here, I was just musing about what the essay made me think of, following my thoughts one to the next...)