Immigration: Challenges and Dangers
Historian and author Bernard Bailyn talks about the challenges that immigrants faced in coming to North America during the colonial period. Professor Bailyn explains that the transatlantic voyage was always unpredictable. Diseases were a problem in ...
Diversity of Language
Linguist, author and university professor Noam Chomsky explains that the variety of languages in the United States has declined very sharply in the last two hundred years. "When the colonists first came here from Europe, " Dr. Chomsky notes, "...the...
Family History: Immigrant Experience in America
As the young, newly formed United States of America began to experience growth spurts, the steady influx of immigrants likewise accelerated. The experiences of U.S. immigrants have been varied, often along racial and ethnic lines. The role of the ...
Families Today and Tomorrow: Family Diversity and Immigration
American families are growing more racially and ethnically diverse, at least in part because of changing patterns of immigration.
Exploitation During the Industrial Revolution
American history professor Alice Kessler-Harris explains that both men and men were exploited during the Industrial Revolution. But those born in America had other options, Professor Kessler-Harris notes, including the "fabled frontier" and free lan...
Franklin D. Roosevelt and Immigration
Professor of history Gary Gerstle talks about the political ascent of Franklin D. Roosevelt at the time of the Great Depression. Professor Gerstle explains that immigrants in New York City were a significant part of Roosevelt's political base. "He a...
America on the Eve of World War I
Professor of history Gary Gerstle explains that the United States was very divided over whether to enter World War I. "There was a strong socialist movement and anarchist movement in American society," Professor Gerstle says. "They were opposed to t...
Age of the City, The: Ethnic City, The
Some cities are marked by clearly-defined ethnic neighborhoods, others are more diverse. Among immigrant families, men are usually the first to arrive, hoping to earn enough money to take back home. Historians call these immigrants "birds of passage...
Women at Work
American history professor Alice Kessler-Harris explains that, in the early twentieth century, two-thirds of native-born White women worked exclusively in the home, while African-American women tended to work outside the home in greater numbers.
Patterns of Immigration Between 1924-1965
Professor of history Gary Gerstle explains that immigration to the United States was relatively low during the period between 1924 and 1965. There were strict limits placed on the number of those who could come to the U.S. during those years, althou...