WHAT MAKES A PERSON A CITIZEN? RACE?

The obviously racial tweets of the American President which were broadcast around the world got me to thinking about the situation here in our own little corner of the world. Trump told four American Congresswomen of colour basically to go back where they came from first before criticizing him or any "American".  Okay, I've paraphrased a little, but that is basically what he said. It didn't matter that three of the women were actually born in the United States or that the fourth, who was born in Somalia, became a citizen of the USA. No. It only mattered that they were obviously not white and therefore didn't belong in America. He might as well have put up a sign "This country reserved for whites only ... and only whites of a certain background ... not all whites accepted!"


I don't want to get into Trump's obviously racial agenda nor to tell the Americans what I think they should do with him. (Clearly, it wouldn't be at all complimentary!) But I do want to discuss what makes a person a citizen of any country. You see, as far as I am concerned you can become a citizen in basically three different ways: first of all, you can acquire citizenship by actually being born in the particular country. Secondly, you can acquire citizenship through either one or both of your parents even if you were actually born elsewhere. And thirdly, you can acquire citizenship by applying for it and getting it once you have fulfilled all of the requirements that have been laid down by that country's laws.


Now, it seems to me that most times if a person is applying for citizenship of a country to which he/she does not have  birthright that this type of person is probably anxious to "put down his/her bucket" and contribute to the society. In other words, generally speaking, a person to be welcomed. And, yes, I am aware that there are (unfortunately) exceptions to this statement.


But should a person who is not born in a country but becomes a citizen be regarded differently from one who is born there? In other words, are there ... or should there be ... different classes of citizenship? I personally don't think so, but what do you think?


I am asking this question because here in good old T&T the population is more or less evenly divided between those of African and Indian descent (with mixed, whites and Syrians making up a small percentage of the whole).  But if you go into either of the two main communities (if I am allowed to use that word) you will soon find lingering just below the surface a complete distrust of the "other side".  As a result, the country remains paralyzed because you can't vote for "them" if you are one of "us". Issues and policies are rarely, if ever, discussed without the looming specter of race colouring every viewpoint. Oh yes! Money comes into play (as it does elsewhere) but nowhere as strongly as the race card which is pulled out again and again whenever one side or the other feels that its support is slipping and needs to be shored up.


So I come back to my question: what makes a person a citizen? His ethnicity? Because, quite frankly, its not only the idiot of an American President who obviously believes that nonsense. And the sooner we as a society genuinely  condemns racism in all of its forms the better. Unfortunately, racism is not a disease that affects only one type of ethnicity, but strikes at all! And until we collectively acknowledge that all of us have an equal right not only to be here, but as to how we think the country should be run we'll be spinning the proverbial top in the proverbial mud! In other words, criticize the ideas but not the personalities.