The classic narrative of America’s development is that a bunch of white men sailed over here to have a better life than they could ever receive in the stratified old world of Europe. Out of a wild and untamed wilderness, these men forged the farms and cities that create a proper civilization on the continent.

In the decades that followed, more Europeans followed and settled the country. Initially, there was some tension, but soon things straightened out and everyone got along amicably. It was by the efforts of these men building up the country that the various people who inhabit the country today are able to live their lives in prosperity, and hope that they too may be able to leave their mark upon this country.

This quaint story has been taught for decades both in schools and popular culture as the central story of American history. It is a very simple and concise story that makes for a good basic national narrative save for one small detail, most of the story is missing. The story of building this country is missing most of its central characters and exciting plotlines and that is to our great detriment.

To help with this project of uncovering the full narrative of America’s past I have illustrated a few of those characters and plotlines that need telling to understand who built America.

The first place to start in any story of who built America is with blacks and slavery. Slavery was the devil’s bargain that made America possible at the terrible price of human bondage, without the labor of black slaves it’s doubtful the young United States would have had the economic muscle to grow into the power it is today. The first industry in the country was the New England textile mills that turned southern cotton into finished goods for sale and export and you can bet that cotton wasn’t picked cruelty free.

Even after abolition, black labor continued to be vital to industrialization as a reconstructing South and opportunistic North used blacks as a cheap and expendable source of labor whether free or through such nefarious schemes as convict leasing. In these and a thousand other ways, African-Americans are inseparable from the American story and just as entitled to the mantle as America’s builders as any white person.

Ever since the Spanish rediscovered America they and their descendants have had an active role in shaping this country. Once you get west of the Rockies, the names of places take on a distinctly Latin feel with many “san” such and such and “los” so and so appearing all over the map.

Hispanic settlers have had a much longer history out west than their Yankee counterparts and have spent that time decisively shaping the culture and landscape even after we stole half of Mexico. Without their work settling towns, managing farms, and running businesses, many of the most productive states in the Union would be mere shadows of themselves.

Certainly, no history of American workers would be complete without mentioning the vital role Asians have played in building up the country. There’s the work of Chinese laborers tunneling through the Sierra Nevada Mountains at great cost of life to build the transcontinental railroad and forming much of the early economic infrastructure of San Francisco and other west coast cities with their restaurants, shops, and laundries. Not to mention the Japanese and Filipino farm laborers that made California a farm powerhouse unrivaled the world over. They and countless other nationalities have made an indelible mark upon the fabric of this country.

Perhaps the most ironic thing for those who only see the building of our country as a white affair is that for most of our history we did not consider most other Europeans as white. The resident white inhabitants of the county viewed the Irish, the Germans, the Italians, the Jews, and virtually any other southern or eastern European nationality with hostility and suspicion.

From “No Irish need apply” signs, to sham trials for “anarchists,” to the revived Klan these immigrants and their descendants had to endure great humiliation and hardship that persisted well into the 20^th century. Even as late as the 1960 election of JFK, there were fears that he was going the be taking orders from the Pope and persecuting good, Christian Americans because he was an Irish Catholic.

And of course behind each of these groups there has been the hidden, but an invaluable labor of women. Whether it was working on farms and factories or in homes, women have been the silent workhorses keeping the country together and allowing men to go off and labor while they performed their prescribed duties.

I believe that most garden variety American racism is built not off of malice, but of a very profound ignorance of both history and culture. It’s very easy to view yourself as superior to another when you have been told all of your life that your ancestors built everything and made all the major advancements in society.

Conversely, it’s very easy to see others as inferior to you when all you have ever been shown are those individuals and groups in subordinate roles such as slaves, or charity cases, or even comic relief. With such a skewed history repeated daily for years on end, and never seriously challenged, is it a surprise when many whites answer the question “Who built America?” they respond that white people did?

The problem is this narrative is too narrow, too constricting and it presents a dangerous denial of history where a biased and oversimplified fairy tale replaces a deeply complex and incredibly nuanced melodrama. It’s important that anyone who has ever contributed to the American experiment has their story told because at the end of the day it’s our story, it’s all our stories and the only way we are going to be able to continue the experiment is to know where we have come from without any sanitization or omission.

To do any thing less would be a grave insult to anyone who has ever labored on behalf of this country, a betrayal of everything they sacrificed to make today possible.

Then real answer then to the question “Who built America?” is whoever put their blood, sweat, and tears into it.