Homestead Acts allowed private citizens to claim land in the west. It encouraged people to explore and own a piece of the new frontier. 

What could a similar initiative look like that would encourage citizens to take ownership of the internet frontier?

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I feel less empowered to "build on my ens" than I do on a domain, but perhaps that's last gen thinking. Rather than a property or name, it's a reputation.

I think ownership can drive ingenuity if rent-seeking behavior isn't the #1 incentive, so in that sense owning a piece of the internet could be good for the US (and I think has been?).

Yep. ENS too.

Everyone gets an ENS? 
Some blockspace?
Their first ETH?

Homestead act was clearly in the interest of the US. 
Americans owning pieces of the internet is less so.