Immigration to the United States - Essay Example

Immigration One of the key observations of the in these chapters is that immigration in America was a complex affair that is hard to define. Much scholarship on the experience of immigrants to the United States focuses on a number of key points: the problems adapting, social and demographic shifts, the contribution made by early immigrants. This is important but well trod ground. The authors of the essays in this book extend and develop these themes in useful ways. But as Handlin points out in Chapter 1, the changes were a two-way street.

Mass immigration from Europe to America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries effectively resulted in the end of the European peasant class. Rather than live as de facto slaves on European estates they moved to America where they could be free. There were clear implications for America, but often obscured ones for Europe too. Another important point that Handlin makes in Chapter 1 involves the process of what can only be called natural selection. The passage from Europe to America was a harsh one.

Only the stronger survived it. He writes that the features that allowed for success were more than physical; the ability to adapt mentally and socially were vital. Also in Chapter 1, Bodnar takes issue with the notion that immigrants had a monolithic approach to adapting to the new American life. Every individual and family found their own path. Some called themselves Americans right away and embraced the American capitalist ethic. Others spent generations finding their place. Similarly, as is explained dramatically in Chapter 2, Africa changed too because of “immigration” to America.

Coastal Africans were abducted and sailed far across the sea to other lands. It is hard to know due to the dearth of information how this effected these African communities, but the consequences must surely have been devastating. What makes these passages so sad is how little we know about the stories of the men and women forced to endure them. This was not a form of immigration, freely-chosen, it was a violent act that reshaped two worlds. Several details stand out, among them the fact that as the slave trade progressed, the skin colour of the slaves became darker as the population on the coast, which had interacted with foreigners, shrank, and slavers were forced to seek new “recruits” in the interior.

These historical issues are worth profound consideration. So much of our present day world has been shaped by immigration that we must fully understand its dimensions and consequences. The truth is that there were a great diversity of stories among the immigrants to America. This issue continues to have serious implications to this day.