A Sermon on the American Melting Pot
Scandinavian Lutherans gather in Kennewick for an outdoor picnic, prompting a lecture on the 'virtues' and 'vices' of immigrant heritage.
The outdoor services and Scandinavian picnic held last Sunday by the Scandinavian Lutherans of this city and vicinity on the shady lawn at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Lauritz Smith, in the orchard tracts overlooking the Columbia River, was a decided success. Rev. O. C. Hellekson of North Yakima preached on the theme of America as a 'melting pot.' He urged his listeners to leave behind their native vices while retaining their virtues, suggesting that the Scandinavian contribution to American religious life would be a 'great national asset.' Following the services, the Smith orchestra provided entertainment, and the 78 attendees enjoyed a picnic dinner.
“The United States is a great melting pot of nations.”
This rhetoric of 'melting pots' and the stripping away of 'foreign' traits was common in early 20th-century Pacific Northwest civic discourse, reflecting contemporary tensions about national identity and assimilation that continue to resonate in modern debates.
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