First, a minor point of historical fact. People today seem to have the idea that the entire Red Scare of the 1950s was personally orchestrated by Senator Joseph McCarthy. In fact, McCarthy did not "blacklist" anyone in Hollywood. The infamous Army-McCarthy hearings, which took place in 1954, came about as a result of his allegations that the federal government and the military were were riddled with Communists and Communist sympathizers. It was the House Committee on Un-American Activities (a committee of the House of Representatives, not the Senate, with no direct connection to Senator McCarthy) which, beginning in 1947, held hearings on supposed Communist influence in the entertainment media. The publication "Red Channels," which served as the basis for much of the blacklist, was published by a private company established by former FBI agents, and also had nothing directly to do with Senator McCarthy.
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Now to the main point: It's meaningless for anyone to feel pride simply in belonging to a group, whether racial, ethnic, national or religious. Why feel proud of something you were handed at birth? People should take pride in their accomplishments, in the things they've worked hard to achieve, the things they've done to improve themselves or to improve the lives of others. And group shame is just as illogical. Why should anyone feel ashamed or guilty about something they personally had nothing to do with -- including events that happened long before they were born? Imagine a world in which no one feels collective pride, collective shame, collective responsibility, or collective ANYTHING -- just autonomous, self-directed beings, living in voluntary cooperation in what we call society. One can only hope.

Shame? You want to see minority shame? Sir, you are out of touch with the reality of being a minority in the United States.
Do you think minority youth join street gangs out of pride? Do you think they use drugs because of pride? Do you think knowing more of your brethren are in prison than in college is a source of pride? I could go on with statistics about unwed mothers, high school dropouts and a long list of social ills, but i think you'll get the idea.
In contrast, you bemoan that "the majority group in America — white Christians — has been allowed to celebrate very little." Please. You sound like one of Warren Buffet's grandchildren complaining about not getting enough presents for his birthday.
We celebrate Christmas, a national holiday based on the birth of Christ. Does the U.S. recognize any national holidays for other religions and cultures? Last time I checked, we have yet to create national holidays for Hanukkah, Ramadan or the Feast of the Epiphany (Latin America's "Christmas").
We celebrate Thanksgiving as a national holiday, a commemoration of the illegal immigration of English settlers on Native American soil that led to the virtual extermination of North America's indigenous culture.
Even our New Year's celebration is based on the Christian calendar. Mr. Prager, the default setting for U.S. culture is White, male and Christian. That's why we even consider women a "minority" when in fact they outnumber men.
Do you feel ashamed for being Jewish? That is your privilege. But don't lay your guilt trip on the rest of us.
No, Mr. Prager. The problem with America's minorities is not a lack of shame. The problem is we have a surplus of it.
Raul Ramos y Sanchez
www.RaulRamos.com