Mary Antin was one of many thousands of Eastern Europeans who emigrated to the United States in the 1890.According to the book, “this was especially true between 1860 and 1920, as more and more immigrants, most of them poor, arrived from eastern and southern Europe in search of better living conditions and freedom from political and religious oppression.”(P.630)Because industries were growing rapidly at that time,they sent recruiting agents abroad to stir up interest in migration to the United State.It was about 3.5 million immigrants in the 1890s and 9 million per year in the first decade of the twentieth century.The new immigrants,who came to the United State after 1883,were different from those of most old immigrants such as language and cultural background.According to the book, “the new immigration that had begun around 1883,however,was marked by an increase in transient,unskilled labors who flocked to urban enclaves where they resisted assimilation.”(P.631) According to the book, “while the Far West had the greatest proportion of urban dwellers,concentrated in cities such as SanFrancisco and Denver, the Northeast and Midwest held far more people in huge cities--New York …show more content…
This document tells us a lot of immigrant experiences in America at that time.First of all,they live in a flat without bathtub,so they have to bathe in public.Second,as Mary Antin said,“in America,then,everything was free, as we had heard in Russia.Light was free;the streets were as bright as a synagogue on a holy day.”As an immigrant in America at that time,they might see a lot of new inventions,which were not popular yet in their motherland.Third,most of new immigrants had poor English skill at that time.Forth,the education was free at that time.Last but not least,as Mary Antin said, “Occasionally, indeed, I was stung by the wasp of family trouble; but I knew a healing ointment--my faith in America.”The immigrants would happen to be in love with America over
In the middle of the nineteenth century, several factors contributed to the growth and expansion of cities in the United States. The 1850s saw a fantastic peak in the immigration of Europeans to America, and they quickly flocked to cities where they could form communities and hopefully find work1. The rushing industrialization of the entire country also helped to rapidly convert America from a primarily agrarian nation to an urban society. The transition, however, was not so smooth. Men and women were attracted to the new cities because of the culture and conveniences that were unavailable to rural communities.
Mark Wyman, the author of the brief essay known as Coming and Going: Round-Trip to America, had a different perspective about immigration to America from the various counties during the 1880’s through the 1930’s. A common belief, regarding the immigration to America, held that immigrates stayed in America during the massive shift of population, due to the enormous creation of factories and cities that erupted in America. The past day literature entices readers to believe that all immigrates came to America to work and eventually settled down to create their own families. It’s taught that all of these families stayed in America for their entire life span. Although despite the common belief, Wyman held to his own thoughts on the controversial debate and pioneered a new way of thinking. He believed that countless immigrates, which came from all over the world, actually only
The 18th Century was a time where most immigrants were of Irish, British, and German descent. From the 1890’s, through the next couple decade, Italians, and Jews would be the cause a new wave of immigration. Between 1900 and 1915, 3 million immigrants would take the journey, and travel to America. They would come through the famed “Ellis
In the years from 1860 through 1890, the prospect of a better life attracted nearly ten million immigrants who settled in cities around the United States. The growing number of industries produced demands for thousands of new workers and immigrants were seeking more economic opportunities. Most immigrants settled near each other’s own nationality and/or original village when in America.
“Columbia’s Unwelcome Guests”, by Frank Beard (February 7, 1885), displays how the unrestricted US policies that were implemented were causing more immigrants to emigrate from Europe. The new aliens are depicted as anarchist, socialist, and the Mafia arriving from the sewers of Italy, Russia, and Germany. In the late nineteenth century, the U.S. government was not only concerned with the racialization of the immigrants entering the country, but also
Luchins, Abraham S. "The Rise and Decline of the American Asylum Movement in the 19th
Between 1880 and 1920 almost twenty-four million immigrants came to the United States. Between better salaries, religious freedom, and a chance to get ahead in life, were more than enough reasons for leaving their homelands for America. Because of poverty, no future and various discrimination in their homelands, the incentive to leave was increasing. During the mid-1800's and early 1900's, the labor and farm hands in Eastern Europe were only earning about 15 to 30 a day. In America, they earned 50 cents to one dollat in a day, doubling their paycheck. Those lower wage earners in their homeland were st...
The political machine was supported by continuing immigration from 1800 to 1920, when more than eighteen million European immigrants flooded into the Untied States in search of economic opportunity and political and religious freedom. At first they came from Northern and Central Europe and then largely from Eastern and Southern Europe. (New Colossus , Pg. 1) New York alone reported that by June 30, 1899 immigrant arrivals from the Russian Empire were around 90,787. Arrivals, from the same year, from all countries of persons of German race were 29,682 and Hebrew arrivals were 60,764. (Changing the Character of Immigration, Pg. 1) Unfortunately, with such a large influx in population during a short amount of time and other variables such as immigrants being unable to speak English, inadequate affordable urban housing, and insufficient jobs a large amount of immigrants ended up in growing slums without the feeling of security or knowledge of how to find help, if there was any, from an unrepresentative government. These factors transformed incoming immigrants into easy prey for patronage from the political machine and sustained it by giving their votes. In the 1930’s mass immigration had stopped and representative government had begun, leading to a decline in patronage needed by then integrated immigrants and a decline in votes for the machine.
It has been observed that, from history American has served as a destination for most immigrants in the world the world (Williams 16).
Kessner, Thomas and Betty Boyd Caroli, “Today’s Immigrants, Their Stories.” Kiniry and Rose 343-346. Print.
Immigrants from around the world wanted to migrate to the United States in search for better opportunities because the United States’ economy was blooming during this time period. Immigrants did not only came to the United States for better jobs, but also for the freedom that the United States gave to its people. Each group of immigrant had their own reason to migrate to the United States. For example, the Irish fled to the United States in the 19th century because the English was oppressing them. This was the reason that led to the first wave of Irish immigration. “The Irish were dispossessed of their island by the English Prosperos. The Irish, too, were depicted and degraded as the ‘Other’- as ‘savages,’ outside of ‘civilization,’ and ‘wild.’
Why is immigration a hot political issue facing policymakers and public administrators? What can the states and federal government do to resolve comprehensive immigration reform?
The immigrants felt that they did not have the quality of the life worth living, they decided that life is indeed worth living, therefore the Puritans determined to improve their lifestyle by moving to the New World. “Being thus left to our fortunes, it fortuned that within ten days, scarce ten amongst us could either go or well stand, such extreme weakness and sickness oppressed us” (Smith 72). They knew if they didn’t leave to the Americas then they'd die of sickness, not having enough of the essentials, nor their freedom. One good choice that the people made was to go to the Americas to seek help, get their freedom back, and to get away from the old dump they live to start a new beginning.
Until the 1860s, the early immigrants not only wanted to come to America, but they also meticulously planned to come. These immigrants known as the “Old Immigrants” immigrated to America from many countries in Northern and Western Europe, known as, Sweden, Norway, Scandinavia, Wales and Ireland. Some of them traveled to Canada, but most of them came to the U.S. seeking freedom they didn’t get in their own countries. Ireland had also recently suffered through a potato famine, where the citizens were left poor and starving. Most settled in New York City and other large cities, where they worked in factories and other low-paying jobs. The immigrants caused a great increase in population in these areas. The “Old Immigrants” tried not to cluster themselves with others of their own nationality. They would mostly try to fit in with Americans as best as they could. Many of them had a plan to come to America, so they saved their money and resources before they arrived so they could have a chance at a better life. On the other hand, another group of immigrants began to arrive
Mary went from not even attending school in Russia, to star pupil in America, illustrating the promise that America had to offer immigrants. American afforded Mary with opportunities that were impossible in her home country of Russia. Even though Frieda also lived in America, her circumstances represent the realities of the Old World. For instance, Frieda’s only way of learning about American history was through Mary, as she was not afforded time to read while working. By not attending school, Frieda did not only became stuck in the Old World mentality in terms of education but also in terms of marriage. Her father “had put Frieda to work out of necessity. The necessity was hardly lifted when she had an offer of marriage, but my father would not stand in the way of what he considered her welfare” (Antin, 218). Frieda was not given the opportunity to marry for love, as was the American way, but was married out of necessity for her welfare, reminiscent of the Old World mentality. Public education provided Mary with the opportunity to marry not because she had to in order to survive, but because she wanted to. The stark contrast between the lives of Frieda, representing life in the