Describe symbolism in Harlem Gallery by Melvin Beaunorus Tolson

In the story, Rendezvous With America, the narrator speaks to the many great men who have helped sculpt the United States. Tolson views America as a melting pot and describes the people that form this melting pot. The people he chooses are substantial individuals of great importance. The common man, however, is lumped into groups, by which, they are referred to by sounds rather than names. People who work in the cotton gin, for example, are identified by the sound of gin. In essence, the sound of each job is symbolic of the working man's contributions to America...... not the laborer himself.