When taking the Naturalization Oath of Allegiance, immigrants make a solemn vow to “renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which [they] have heretofore been a subject or citizen.”
On its face, this is usually taken to mean that the immigrant will not commit treason. However, renouncing fidelity to whom, and what, one was subject to before, and espousing — as the oath goes on to say — faith and allegiance to the United States and its Constitution, means a change in mind and heart, not just outward action.
What is that change of heart and mind but assimilation to the adoptive country, its culture, and its peoplehood? At the core of this assimilation is the rejection of foreign thinking and culture that pose a threat to the oath-taking and covenant-making. That is, when one takes that oath, one is swearing that the culture and religion they came in with will amend itself to that oath.
Read the full essay at the Washington Examiner.