Discussion Topic
During the 1830s and 1840s, a new wave of immigration washed over the United States. Earlier immigrants had come mostly from Great Britain or from Africa as slaves, but the new arrivals came mostly from Ireland and Germany. Smaller numbers of Scandinavians (mostly Swedes and Norwegians), Chinese, and more English also came to the U.S. during this time. The new immigrants greatly affected the nation's demographics.
In your first posting, respond to at least one of the following questions:
- Why did German immigrants in the mid-nineteenth century get better jobs and achieve greater financial success than their Irish counterparts?
- Why did Irish immigrants encounter more discrimination than the Germans or Scandinavians did?
- Why did immigrants cluster into their own ethnic enclaves, rather than try to fit into mainstream society?
As in the mid-nineteenth century, the United States today is experiencing a period of substantial immigration. In your second posting, compare current immigration to historical immigration. Respond to at least one of the following questions:
- In what ways are today's immigrants to the U.S. better or worse off than the immigrants of the mid-nineteenth century?
- Do immigrants today seem to have more or fewer opportunities for economic and social advancement than German, Irish, Scandinavian, and Chinese immigrants had in the mid-nineteenth century?
- Do non-immigrant Americans today react to immigration in the same way as they did in the mid-nineteenth century?
Required Reading
Before you enter the discussion, be sure to read the related pages in your textbook. If you're using Tindall and Shi, see:
| 8th Edition | 7th Edition | 6th Edition | 5th Edition |
| Chapter 12, pages 475-482 | Chapter 12, pages 443-449 | Chapter 12, pages 473-481 | Chapter 12, pages 519-528 |
Scoring
This discussion is worth a maximum of 15 points. You'll get 10 points for your first post. Your instructor will give you another 5 points if you post a follow-up comment or question that furthers the discussion.
Original:
ReplyDeleteGerman immigrants in the mid-nineteenth century got better jobs and achieved greater financial success than their Irish counterparts because they migrated in families and in groups rather than individually, like many Irish immigrants. They settled in rural areas and tried to get themselves established in skilled jobs or on land as well as created communities of German immigrants. These communities helped to create German stores, schools, and clubs. Also these immigrants included a number of educated individuals including doctors, lawyers, teachers, etc. Immigrants clustered into their own ethnic enclaves, rather than tried to fit into mainstream society because not all immigrants were welcomed by Americans. Many Americans resented immigrants. For example, the Know-Nothing Party believed in restricting the number of immigrants into the country.
Original :
ReplyDeleteGerman immigrants int he mid-nineteenth century got better jobs and achieved greater financial success than their Irish counterparts because they were professional people such as doctors, lawyers, teachers and engineers. They also lived in rural areas, than in cities unlike the Irish Immigrants. The German who lived in rural areas were independent farmers. The Germans also traveled in groups rather than individuals unlike the Irish Immigrants.The Irish encountered more discrimination because due to the famine, large amounts of Irish Immigrants usually young women traveled to the United States. They were usually poor and unskilled workers, who lived in tenants. Tenants were looked down on, which lead to the discrimination of Irish Immigrants. I believe that immigrants clustered into their own ethnic enclaves because that was familiar to them, and did not really understand the mainstream society.
To Shevana:
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize the know-nothing party caused the immigrants to relatively stay within their own cultures. That the immigrants felt threatened because of the measures the know nothing party took to restrict immigrants. After reading your analysis, I was able to deeply analyze and also was a really good analysis!
I think today's immigrants are given more rights and are not discriminated as greatly as they were during 1830s and 1840s.I think todays immigrants do have more economic opportunities now and discrimination against Irish, German, Scandinavian and Chinese do not exist, and they have more economic opportunities. In today's society some do look at immigration and want restrictions but after many laws that have protected the interest of the non-immigrant and immigrant, i believe that their are not much controversy.
ReplyDeleteOriginal:
ReplyDeleteGerman immigrants generally favored better than their Irish counterparts because the Germans that arrived tended to be learned, cultured professional people: doctors, lawyers, teachers, and engineers. Also, the Germans that arrived tended to already have the means to become established in skilled jobs or on the land. This was in part due to the fact that the influx of Germans settled in rural areas instead of cities and were independent farmers, skilled workers, and shopkeepers. While the Irish immigrants tended to deviate from farming and land, German farmers went to work in a field in which they were familiar with and thus, could have success in.
Original:
ReplyDeleteThe immigrants in today's world tend to fare worse than immigrants in the past simply because immigrants tend to lack education and the majority of the jobs in the United States presently require some sort of finished formal education. Immigrants lack the know-how to work current technology and haveto settle for menial jobs while immigrants in the past didn't have to worry about the need for an education to make a living. Immigrants in the past could easily settle in rural areas and create farms or go into cities to find work but laws today prohibit such freedom for immigrants.
Original:
ReplyDeleteImmigrants today are better off than the immigrants of the mid-nineteenth century because today there are various rules and regulations to protect immigrants, such as minimum wage and specific regulations in the workplace. Today discrimination is frowned upon in society. There are also quotas that various places have to fulfill. Universities and businesses have to have diversity among their employees and students, which makes it easier for immigrants to gain an education.
In the mid-ninteenth century the new wave of immigrants were very different culturally. German and Scandanavian immigrants came in groups and families, and opened buisnesses in small communities with others like them. These immigrants also tended to be more educated and therefore could start there own buisness. Irish immigrants generally traeled alone, and were less skilled. They had to find jobs working for other people.
ReplyDeleteNaomi: The Know-Nothing party was the first third party in the US. And they were mostly a one-issue party, against immigrants. I'm just curious to how successful they were and who were there constituents?
ReplyDeleteGerman immigrants were more likely to get better jobs and become more financially successful in comparison to the Irish immigrants for several reasons. Overall the German immigrants were generally more educated and skilled in certain areas which created an ease of access into various career paths based in their skills. Also Germans had a tendency of traveling in families in comparison to individually and settled in rural areas which created more financial opportunities.
ReplyDeleteI believe todays immmigrants are far worse off than the immigrants of the past because now adays the standards and requirements for employees have been raised. In order to make a decent living minimum wage does not cut it anymore and it seems as though that only individuals with a good education remain successful financially which may not be the case with many immigrants. Although many opportunities have increased, these opportunities are basically reserved for those skilled and educated individuals.
ReplyDeleteOriginal:
ReplyDeleteIn the 19th century, German immigrants got better jobs and more financial success than Irish immigrants because the Germans were from a more professional and developed background than the Irish. Germans were more prone to have experience in skilled fields whereas Irish immigrants were generally less skilled, and thus got lower paying jobs.
Original:
ReplyDeleteI believe that non-immigrants in America do not act the same way towards immigrants today as they did in the nineteenth century. Immigrants are generally given fairer job opportunities now than they were in the nineteenth century, and people generally are less prejudice towards immigrants.
Original:
ReplyDeleteThe Irish did not take as well to the new culture in comparison to the German and the Scandinavian, the Irish were more discriminated against because they were less experienced than the Germans and had little ideas about how the system works in America, also they lived in poor parts of the neighborhood that was frowned down upon similar to Hoovervilles post the Great Depression. Current immigration as oppose to in the 19th century I think is much more tolerant and accepting of various cultures and religions. Although their entry into America is a more difficult task , there lively hood is more peaceful now than before
As German immigrated to America they came in groups of families, each with a skill set, previously obtained. Together these people would move into some of the more rural areas of the country. Within these towns they would establish themselves as important factors of the community, such as doctors or teachers, something that the community needed to both survive and the thrive. Their Irish counter parts tended to settle in industrial areas, where they would obtain jobs at factories, never really moving up from the hard manual labor. This became a cycling trend, where their children would work in a factory too, rather than focusing on the education that it would take to get out of the manual labor.
ReplyDeleteImmigrants today have a lot of help from the government with programs like affirmative action. Today, as a society people are a lot more accepting, which makes it easier to come immigrate to this country.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jon, in the sense that immigrants today have an easier time in American society than immigrants did a century or two ago.
Immigrants clustered into their own little sections because they wanted to be able to associate with some people and there was no better individuals to associate with than their own people form their own culture. Fitting into mainstream society would have been difficult at first and for immigrants stepping out into the public seemed difficult.
ReplyDeleteImmigrants in Modern society have an easier time reforming into mainstream society because of government assistance and the new opportunities that are given to them and they make for themselves. As compared to the past today's immigrants have life a lot more easier than a century ago.
ReplyDelete