Chris Cole FRSA

I am a great fan of America because in my early years my family emigrated from the UK. I was a small child in the late 1950's and I have some great memories of some very pleasant experiences of my life growing up over there, before we returned to the UK in the sixties.

As a stranger, I definitely felt accepted in America, and my memories have highlighted for me one of the real challenges that I feel we are going to face as a nation - a joined up immigration strategy, which all political parties are going to have to contend with.

During a recent trip to Washington DC, I had enough time to 'go to the Mall', which is like Drake Circus shopping centre, only with more shops. During lunch time, my friends and I decided to check out the massive array of incredibly delicious American junk food on offer, but what really struck me, after I bought some southern fried chicken, was the amazing sight of every colour of humanity enjoying an afternoon out with their families. Chinese, Vietnamese, Mexicans, Swedes all wearing the colours of their favourite baseball, basketball or football teams on caps and bomber jackets, out enjoying the freedom of the American Dream.

It's what I really like about America. There is an easy integration into the USA. I don't think it is just the size of the country which makes this integration easy, but it is about the size of the 'heart' of the nation. I believe that America has a great sense of itself and of its national identity, (which is something I think we lack here in the UK). Plymouth undoubtedly had a part to play in this as The Mayflower set sail in 1620 and established America's founding Fathers, which helped lay the foundation for America's democratic system.

Unfortunately, cynicism erodes the dreams and hopes of life, and I fear that many of us here in the UK have succumbed to that cynicism. Where is our identity and hope? I believe it is in our Christian values, (but not necessarily in our Christian traditions, which can so often be changed by God himself). The values of Jesus Christ as the Son of God; forgiveness and unconditional love, and the welcoming of the stranger amongst us.

Like it or not, with the rise of global communications, and with economic growth in Asia and China we truly are watching the birth of the global village. In faith terms, the largest Christian Church is probably in China, with Asia, Africa and South America on the rise. As a Christian, comforted by the prophetic writings of the bible, it appears that the world is slowly and painfully integrating, with a great focus on Jerusalem and the Middle East.

But with all that being said, I remain very proud of my English inheritance. I hope and pray that we can recover our sense of identity through the real values of the Christian faith. This, together with a sound immigration policy understood by all parties, which also cares for those who have lived here all their lives, will help us to have the Godly ability to 'welcome the stranger amongst us'.

This article was originally published in the Plymouth Shopper, a group of 7 localised community newspapers produced by Cornerstone Vision, reaching 62,000 homes every month in Plymouth. Each edition carries positive news stories and features, and provides local businesses, community groups and organisations with a very localised media platform to reach their own area.