HTY 110: Immigration: Home

Awarded the 1952 Pulitzer Prize in history, The Uprooted chronicles the common experiences of the millions of European immigrants who came to America in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries--their fears, their hopes, their expectations. The New Yorker called it "strong stuff, handled in a masterly and quite moving way," while the New York Times suggested that "The Uprooted is history with a difference--the difference being its concerns with hearts and souls no less than an event." The book inspired a generation of research in the history of American immigration, but because it emphasizes the depressing conditions faced by immigrants, focuses almost entirely on European peasants, and does not claim to provide a definitive answer to the causes of American immigration, its great value as a well-researched and readable description of the emotional experiences of immigrants, and its ability to evoke the time and place of America at the turn of a century, have sometimes been overlooked. Recognized today as a foundational text in immigration studies, this edition contains a new preface by the author.

Now available in paperback Throughout his tenure as a registry clerk with the Immigration Division of Ellis Island, Augustus F. Sherman systematically photographed more than 200 families, groups and individuals while they were being held by customs for special investigations. This volume collects and provides an essential revaluation of Sherman's striking portraits, which predate August Sander's cataloging efforts by several years. An historical document of unprecedented worth, "Augustus F. Sherman: Ellis Island Portraits" includes almost 100 portraits taken from 1905 through 1920. The subjects are frequently dressed in elaborate national costumes or folk dress, emphasizing the variety and richness of the cultural heritage that came together to form the United States. Romanian shepherds, German stowaways, Russian vegetarians, Greek priests and Ghanaian women in elaborately patterned dresses are treated with equal gravitas. The resulting body of work presents a unique and powerful picture of the stream of immigrants who came through Ellis Island. Though originally taken for his own personal study, Sherman's work appeared in the public eye as illustrations for publications with titles such as "Alien or American, " and hung on the walls of the customs offices as cautionary or exemplary models of the new Americans.

Henry Louis Gates, Jr., gives us a sumptuously illustrated landmark book tracing African American history from the arrival of the conquistadors to the election of Barack Obama. Informed by the latest, sometimes provocative scholarship and including more than seven hundred images--ancient maps, fine art, documents, photographs, cartoons, posters--Life Upon These Shores focuses on defining events, debates, and controversies, as well as the signal achievements of people famous and obscure. Gates takes us from the sixteenth century through the ordeal of slavery, from the Civil War and Reconstruction through the Jim Crow era and the Great Migration; from the civil rights and black nationalist movements through the age of hip-hop to the Joshua generation. By documenting and illuminating the sheer diversity of African American involvement in American history, society, politics, and culture, Gates bracingly disabuses us of the presumption of a single "black experience." Life Upon These Shores is a book of major importance, a breathtaking tour de force of the historical imagination.

The uncomfortable contemporary realities of immigration, enmeshed as they are in economic, human rights, and national security issues, have once again propelled foreign immigration to the United States toward the top of the list of U.S. domestic policy concerns. Three respected authorities on immigration and international affairs here present a carefully calibrated history of U.S. immigration in primary source documents, tracing the roots of the current debate in the history of our profoundly divided and surprisingly cyclical response to foreign immigration. This book documents this national ambivalence, identifying the major waves of immigration and clarifying the ways in which the existing social and political fabric conditioned both the response to the newcomers and their prospects of eventual integration into American society.Part I introduces the historical record: N The early days of the Republic, when most immigrants arrived from northern EuropeN The most important wave of immigration to the United States in the country's history, over 1880-1920, when most immigrants arrived from Asia or from southern and eastern EuropeN Virulent post-World War I anti-immigration sentimentN The World War II-era absorption of huge numbers of displaced persons fleeing the misery and devastation of EuropeN Transition from a quota system to a preference systemN Heightened debate in the 1980s and 1990sN The immigration policy repercussions of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001Part II takes up special issues in the contemporary immigration debate, including the security debate and immigration, immigration and the U.S. judiciary, the immigration debate and the economy, and the spectrum of public opinion on immigration revealed during the 2008 presidential election campaign. The authors demonstrate that today's highly polarized immigration reform debate in many respects recapitulates the antagonisms and chaotic policies of the 1980s and 1990s, when Ronald Reagan's Republican administration implemented an amnesty program while the state of California adopted the punitive Proposition 187.Paramount in today's immigration debate, however, are the homeland security concerns rendered acute by the 2001 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York City. The controversial USA PATRIOT Act of 2001 and the Homeland Security Act of 2002 are among the documents surveyed in relation to the contemporary immigration debate."

Explores the various aspects of the conversation revolving around immigration in the US, including such hot-button talking points as so-called 'anchor babies', as well as recent policy discussions related to the DREAM Act, counter-terrorism, the policing of borders, and education.

Discusses trends in immigration in the United States, including the demographic makeup of today's newcomers, the status of undocumented workers, their impact on the economy and culture, and the trepidation felt by many native-born citizens toward these ne

In the two decades since the first edition of this tremendously successful book appeared, a vast scholarship undertaken by historians, sociologists, economists, and cultural anthropologists has altered the contours of American immigration history, challenging scholars to rethink long-held perspectives. Insights derived from these diverse sources enrich the second edition of this popular text and have prompted important changes in emphasis and interpretation. Thoughtfully written to help student readers appreciate the varied pre- and post-migration experiences of the many groups and individuals who came to, and came to shape, the United States during this busy period, The Huddled Masses is essential reading for all enrolled in the United States history survey as well as specialized courses in Immigration and Ethnic Studies.

"Addressing a number of hot-topic issues associated with immigration...this book will be a useful starting point for many students. Recommended for undergraduates." - Choice