Chapter 18 Section 4 The New Immigrants By:John and Max

Reasons For Migration Between 1865 and 1915, some 25 million immigrants entered the United States. Also machines were quickly replacing farmhands, forcing more people out of their countries. In the 1880’s, Jews in Russia became targets of government-sponsored pogroms, or violent attacks towards Jews. Political unrest drove many out of their native lands. In Mexico, one revolution pushed tens of thousands of refugees across the Rio Grande. Jobs pulled immigrants to the United States, just as the promise of freedom without traditions of democracy and liberty.

The New Immigrants In the early 1800’s, most immigrants were Protestants from Northern and Eastern Europe.They understood English and had experience in democracy. Most of the new immigrants who began to arrive in the late 1800’s, came from southern and western Europe (Italy, Greece, Poland Russia, etc.) Few understood English or had experience living in a democracy or in a city.

Coming To America Passage by boat was miserable. Immigrants were crammed in steerage, large compartments usually meant for cattle. Rough seas sickened the travelers. Most people coming from Europe came from New York.(After 1892, they went to the receiving center in Ellis Island. Asian immigrants came in through California. New arrivals faced physical examinations. If they were seriously injured or ill, they might be sent back home. Steerage- large compartments that usually held cattle

Immigrant Neighborhoods Kielbasa- Polish Sausage Goulash- Hungarian stew Immigrant Neighborhoods Isolated- To set apart Two thirds of immigrants settled in cities, near other people from the same country. Ethnic neighborhoods helped people feel less isolated in their new homes. In immigrant neighborhoods, sidewalks rang with the sounds of Italian, Chinese, Yiddish, and other languages. Newcomers celebrated familiar holidays and cooked foods from the old country, such as kielbasa and goulash. Italians joined social groups such as the Sons of Italy. Greeks read the newspapers in Greek. Small storefronts were turned into Jewish synagogues or Buddhist temples.

Assimilation Newcomers felt caught between the old and new world. Most clung to traditional modes of family, worship, and community relations. Immigrants worked hard to assimilate. Children assimilated quicker than adults. This is because they were surrounded by English speakers at school and on the street. Children played baseball and dressed as a native born American citizens. Immigrant parents felt pride and also pain as they watched their children change and accustom to the American culture. Parents dreamed for education for their children so it would better the next generation. Assimilation- process of becoming part of another culture

Contributions of Immigrants The labor of immigrants was essential to the American economy. Newcomers took any job they could, including jobs in steel mills, meatpacking companies, mines, and even sweatshops, because they were so desperate. Irish, Chinese, and Mexican immigrants laid down hundreds of miles of railroads. Hard work and saving made immigrants slowly advance economically. Immigrants began opening small stores where they could make a profit. Since they had brought customs and traditions over from their home countries, foods like spaghetti, chow mein, and bagels became part of American life. Individual immigrants made major contributions. Like Andrew Carnegie and Alexander Graham Bell, who were both born in Scotland. Samuel Goldwyn and Louis Meyer, Jewish immigrants from Europe, established the motion picture industry. Arturo Toscanini, Italy born, became a famous orchestra conductor. Belgian immigrant Leo Baekeland invented the first plastic.

A New Wave of Nativism Nativism, the act of preserving the United States for native-born American citizens, increased in the 1840’s. Nativists argued that immigrants would not be able to assimilate because their languages, religions, and customs were too different. They also stated that immigrants took jobs away from American citizens. Nativists associated immigrants with violence, crime, and anarchy. Mobs drove Chinese immigrants from mining camps and cities, and sometimes even killed them. In 1882, Congress passed a law to exclude Chinese laborers from the United States. The Chinese Exclusion Act was the first law to limit immigration based on race. It was finally repealed in 1943. In 1917, Congress passed a law that denied entry to immigrants who could nor read their own languages. Since education was poor, this law barred most of the world’s poor people from immigrating to the United States. Anarchist- a person who opposes all forms of government