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American Has Always Been a Place of Diverse People

Across time, people have come to America to make better lives for themselves, their families and their communities. The earliest to arrive were people we now call Native Americans. They formed distinct communities and nations in America over thousands of years. In Orange County, for example, groups including the Acjachemen (or Juaneño) and Tongva (or Gabrieleño) lived in this region long before the arrival of Europeans.

In 1492, Europeans representing many different nations and speaking many different languages began arriving in the Americas. Over time, they brought their cultures to this land. The interactions among these diverse Europeans were sometimes cooperative, but often full of conflict. European impact on indigenous Americans was often devastating, as when Europeans seized Native American lands.

Many people from Africa were enslaved and brought to America against their will, subjected to violence on a massive scale. These Africans, and the African-Americans who are their descendants, fought for their freedom and have played an instrumental role in challenging America to live up to its ideals. Today, people of African heritage continue to shape and contribute to American culture in profound ways.

Over time, millions of people from Asia brought the richness of their cultures and languages and made significant contributions to American culture. The growing Asian-American and Pacific Islander communities are a vibrant part of this nation.

America today is made up of people originating from many different nations, who seek to make real one of the earliest American slogans: e pluribus unum, a Latin phrase meaning “Out of many, one.”