I agree with Marionthel Librarian above. When our nation began, citizens identified by the state they lived in. George Washington was a Virginian. Adams was from Massachusetts. That made sense when travel was so much slower and only the very wealthy had the means to travel great distances. Today we can cross the continent in hours, but too many citizens focus on the rights of individual states, rather than the rights and responsibilities of all Americans. A child born in the 21st century often lives in a multitude of states before graduating from high school. He or she identifies as being an American way more than the individual state he or she might have lived in for a year or two. Our laws and practices should reflect that. Our rights as American citizens come from the Constitution much more deeply than from any individual state. All Americans should have access to the same health care rights, the right to be protected from assault weapons, the same educational rights and the freedom to read the same books. We are Americans first.