Constantino Diaz-Duran is a fellow at the Center for Social Cohesion at Arizona State University. He is chronicling his walk from New York to Los Angeles to celebrate his eligibility for American citizenship. Below he explains why. Follow Constantino’s progress.
I came to this country a decade ago from Guatemala, full of aspirations – none greater than being able to someday call myself an American. It has been a blessing to reside legally in this great country, but now I am eligible for citizenship. I will no longer be a visitor, but will take a solemn oath to “support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” I will promise to “absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity” to the place where I was born. And I will even swear “that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law.”
Becoming an American citizen is about more than gaining the right to vote or a blue passport. By taking the Oath of Allegiance, I will be joining a nation, a community. I will become the “fellow citizen” of more than 300 million people who have gained that title either by being born here or – like myself – through naturalization.
Before I do this, I want to gain a better understanding of what it will mean to finally be an “American.” I also want to mark this occasion in a big way, as a defining, transformative milestone in my life. There will ultimately be paperwork involved, yes, but this is no jaunt to the DMV.
I am to become an American!
There are preparations, rituals and celebrations involved with joining a religious faith, marrying someone, or graduating from school, but besides the powerful oath of allegiance I will take with pride, there are few established traditions for attaining citizenship. Bookstores aren’t crammed with naturalization etiquette manuals or planning magazines; I doubt Macy’s would have a form for me to register.
So I thought long and hard about the proper way to commemorate becoming American in a meaningful way. I could cram for the citizenship test (quick, name one author of the Federalist Papers) or create with the assistance of Netfllix a self-prescribed “All You Ever Needed to Know to Be American” film festival (which 10 movies would you include?). Or I could enter a hot dog-eating contest, or attend the Fourth of July parade in a small Missouri town.
Those would all be worthy endeavors, but in the end, I concluded that if I am to be an American, I should first take a hike – not only talk the talk, but walk the walk. I have been living for many years in New York, a city I love, but I yearn to see my adopted country, to get to know it in all its majestic diversity.
And so, on July 4th I will set off from New York to California, hoping to walk some 4,300 miles over approximately eight months.
I want to see the spacious skies, the amber waves of grain and the purple mountain majesties. But even more importantly, I want to meet Americans of as many different backgrounds, ages and lifestyles as I can. I want to ask them what it means to them to call themselves “American.” I want to talk to the people who live here but haven’t attained citizenship, to learn about their aspirations and why this nation remains a beacon upon a hill to so many around the world.
I look forward to exploring what makes us a nation, what keeps these United States united. I want to find out what a 10th-generation New Englander has in common with a first-generation Latino in California, and what a descendant of African slaves shares with a granddaughter of Vietnamese refugees. Benjamin Franklin once said that his country is “where liberty dwells,” and I suspect that in his timeless wisdom lies part of the answer as to the connective tissue binding us together.
My journey will be daunting. I am “two with nature,” as Woody Allen once put it, so undoubtedly there will be difficult moments when I might wish I’d opted for the Americana film festival on my couch instead. But in the end, I am hoping to gain a rich portrait of this great country that will stay with me for a lifetime.
I will be documenting my journey as I go along, sharing the wisdom and perspective of people I come across. I hope to see you along the way.
Be a part of Constantino’s journey.
Follow Constantino on Facebook and Twitter.
See Constantino’s entire route.
*Photo by Constantino Diaz-Duran.
What a wonderful idea! As travelers and adventurers, we applaud you!
As an American myself, I want to tell you that being an American means one simple thing. Freedom to be whatever I want.
Good luck and safe travels to you. AdventureME.com will be following your progress and cheering you on, every step of the way!
Bon Voyage!
We checked Constantino’s route and our home is on his way just south of Littlestown, PA on PA route 194. If it fits with his schedule he’s welcome to camp out on our property, have a meal, and take a shower. We’re about 28 miles from Frederick, MD.
I’m proud of you, Constantino, and will be following you on this amazing journey!
Enjoy your journey. And all the best. Which is what I know your soon to be fellow Americans will show you. Take care of your feet. They’ll need it.
Bravo, Constantino! This walk is a wonderful way to get know more about what makes America tick. My life has been filled with long walks. In 1989 I became the first person in the modern world to walk the 900 mile route of the Cherokee Trail of Tears, in reverse from Oklahoma to Alabama across 8 states. My book about that journey, WALKING THE TRAIL, ONE MAN’S JOURNEY ALONG THE CHEROKEE TRAIL OF TEARS, was first published by Delacorte Press in 1991 and the publisher nominated it for a Pulitzer and a National Book Award. Last month it went on display in the National Teachers Hall of Fame. This walk changed my life and brought greater awareness of the Trail of Tears to America and Europe. I lecture around the world on this walk and the book has sold over 250,000 copies. Still in print, it is now a Native American classic. I hope many enriching experiences and insights come to you on your long walk and that an important book arises from it.
Good luck. I’m excited you’re making this amazing journey. I will be following you til you make it to the west coast.
Walking is a fundamental human action that today we have forgotten how to do it. This forgetfulness is not necessarily an outcome of our own making. When our nation became overwhelmingly dependent on the automobile little by litter our cities became drive in- drive by -drive through places. In a century we disconnected from our bodies and became mostly windshield spectators of things that go by or permanent fixtures in our automobiles. Today walking is an effort that you must carefully execute and quite often is disdained as an effort of last resort when going places. So the idea of walking from New York (the gateway of the 19th/20th centuries great immigrations) to Los Angeles (the gateway of the 20th/21st centuries great immigrations) is a terrific project to celebrate your citizenship.
May I suggest that as you walk to LA to reflect on the unique inspirations that you are creating for policy makers, urban planners, health planners, transportation planners, architects, artist etc? In my opinion, your walk is a voyage into the geographies of the common ground and the beauty of the ordinary where each step is felt and refreshed by sweat. You will be remembered as an ordinary American human being creating an extraordinary but ordinary walking journey. It is our ability to walk the talk that we need the most to reconstitute the new frontiers in our cities and create livable urban environments were walking for all is a viable option. Could I join you when you walk into California?
Thank you, everyone, for your support. I look forward to meeting some of you as I get close to where you live. Anyone who wants to join me should reach out to me directly via facebook (www.facebook.com/WalkNYtoLA) so we can be in touch and make plans.
I’m impressed. I hope you meet the best people possible on your journey. Keep us posted. What you are doing is admirable.
God keep you safe and I will ask him to protect you from any harm during your cross country journey.
Dear Constantino, I wish you the best of luck, on your walk and beyond. We worked together at the college and I knew then that you would be following your own unique path throuhg life.