Definitions for what constitutes a Heritage American vary. Some define it as descendants of those present in the area that would become the United States before the American Revolution, where it is debated as to whether or not Indigenous and the descendants of Slaves are Heritage Americans.[1] Broadly, the imagery of a Heritage America evokes an image of an America with an outwardly European quality.
A terminology for this designation called Old Stock Americans already exists. Old Stock Americans are Americans who are descended from the original settlers of the Thirteen Colonies.
History
Vivek Ramaswamy
(@VivekGRamaswamy)
tweeted:
Reagan said it well: you can go to France, but you won’t be a Frenchman. You move to Italy or Germany, but you’ll never be an Italian or a German. You can live the rest of your life in China, but you’d never be Chinese. But America is different: we’re a nation built on ideals, and it’s what makes us exceptional.
Following the assassination of Charlie Kirk, growing rifts in the MAGA movement began to show, and questions about American identity began to arise in online political discourse, especially on platforms such as X (formerly Twitter). The growing popularity of openly ethnonationalist figures such as Nick Fuentes has loomed large over much of the Republican Party, including at AmericaFest 2025. During the opening speeches of the event, Nick Fuentes and the growing ethnonationalist cohort was referenced multiple times, both by name and implicitly, including by Vivek Ramaswamy, who has faced protruded backlash for his comments on American workers and culture during December 2024[5].
United States Vice President JD Vance said "we’re a particular place with a particular people (...) Our ancestors realized that to carve a successful nation from new land meant creating new tangible things, new homes, new towns, new infrastructure to tame a wild continent. That is our heritage as Americans.[6][1]
The idea of a Heritage America is often juxtaposed to American Creed, that is, an American nation which is defined by a set of values rather than any shared ancestry.
On social media, the Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security have posted imagery on "your Homeland’s Heritage".[1][7][8]
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