Polish Immigration Essay

Introduction

Since the 1600s, Polish immigrants have moved to the United States of America in hopes of beginning a new life with an abundance of resources to obtain the American Dream; or to reconnect with their relatives whom have settled in the States a while ago; or to escape the times of war or national oppression Poland faced by its neighboring countries. Whatever the reason may be, from the beginnings of Poles immigrating to America, once arriving in the states, they created for themselves a Polish ethnic community, otherwise known as Polonia. This community was intricately constructed in which Poles held onto their Polish customs and traditions so they would not have to change their entire way of living even though moving to America

In the present research study, the Polish immigration rates to America during the years of 1929 to 1931 will be examined. Statistics show that a large number of Poles move to the United States in 1929 and an even greater number of Polish immigrants come during 1930. Why such a large of mass of new emigration Poles came to America during this time frame poses as an interesting question as the United States entered its Great Depression in 1929. It would seem that people would want to avoid moving to America when the economy was suffering greatly in all states and where its citizens were not only loosing their jobs, but also staying unemployed for a considerable amount of time because there were very few available jobs. Yet, this did not seem to phase the increase of almost fifteen hundred Polish immigrants as illustrated in the “Table of Immigration Since 1928” from the Chicago Daily Tribune (1945:

1994. Polish Americans. 2nd ed. New Brunswick, NJ: Transaction Publishers.

Pacyga, Dominic A. 1982. “Polish Immigration to the United States before World War II: An Overview.” Polish American Studies 39:28-37.

Perry, Donald R. 1942. “Aliens in the United States.” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 223:1-9.

Renkiewicz, Frank, ed. 1973. The Poles in America, 1608-1972: A Chronology & Fact Book. Dobbs Ferry, NY: Oceana Publications, Inc.

Rosner, Jan. 1934. “Measures to Combat the Depression and Unemployment in Poland.” International Labour Review 30:158-160.

Ryan, Barbara. 1990. “Integrating Feminist and Sociological Thought: The Life and Work of Helena Znaniecka Lopata.” The American Sociologist 21:164-178.

Sherbondy, Donald J. 1930. “Effect of Unemployment Upon Immigration into the U.S.” Cumulative Digest of International Law and Relations 12:1-2.

Sister Lucille. 1951. “The Causes of Polish Immigration to the United States.” Polish American Studies 8:85-91.

Swastek, Joseph. 1944. “What is a Polish American?” Polish American Studies 1:34-44.

“Table of Immigration Since 1928.” Chicago Daily Tribune. May 17, 1945. p.