1 USA: Immigration Flashcards
(31 cards)
define xenophobia
fear of foreigners
what is the idea of the ‘melting pot’?
- ‘e pluribus: unum’ - from the many: one
- America was like a ‘melting pot’, where immigrants from everywhere lost their old identity and all became Americans
‘push’ factors
- lack of land/ownership
- persecution - religious, political, economic
- overcrowding
- poverty
‘pull’ factors
- plentiful supply of land and hope of owning property
- promise of religious tolerance
- open-door policy
- equal opportunity
- sense of adventure
- America’s ‘bill of rights’ (laws of freedom etc)
- America seen as the ‘land of opportunity’
where did people come from to be part of the ‘melting pot’?
- Native Americans
- Hispanics
- Africa
- Asia
- Southern + Eastern Europe
- North + West Europe
detail on Native Americans
originally lived across the whole North American continent and were affected by successive waves of immigration
between 1850 and 1890, they were forced off their land and by 1917, many lived on reservations
detail on Hispanics
USA was attractive to ppl from Central America, Mexico + South America (were collectively known as ‘hispanics’)
detail on Africa
in the 1700s and 1800s, Africans were brought to America as slaves (slavery ended in 1865)
by 1920, there were 11 million black people living throughout America
detail on Asia
there was a growing no. of Chinese and Japanese people on the West Coast of America
the Chinese helped to create cities here and mainly worked on the construction of roads
detail on Southern and Eastern Europe
ppl from here were the NEW immigrants
came from eg. Russia, Poland, Italy - escaping poverty and persecution in Europe (many were Jews and Catholics)
detail on North and West Europe
ppl from here were the OLD immigrants
came mostly from Britain, Germany and Scandanavia
The descendants of these immigrants tended to have the best jobs, most money, most political power
sometimes known as ‘WASPS’
what does ‘WASPS’ stand for?
White
Anglo
Saxon
ProtestantS
what was the ‘open door policy’?
American policy that stated that their country’s ‘door’ was ‘open’, so that anyone was freely allowed in to their country to share their prosperity. Therefore aimed to make immigration as EASY as possible
what was the ‘American dream’?
the belief that anyone, whatever their background, could attain success in American society, because it was a society where prosperity was positive for all
the American dream was thought to be achieved through HARD WORK, not chance
both native (American born) Americans and American immigrants pursued the ‘American dream’
define political extremism
beliefs outside of the mainstream social values, motivated by anger, fear and hatred
what was ‘Americanisation’?
the process of immigrants assimilating into American society
in 1915, Americanisation day was launched to celebrate this
immigrants had to go through formal aspects of ‘Americanisation’, eg. ceremonies, courses, English lessons, preparation for (and sitting of) a ‘citizenship exam’
when was WWI?
1914-1918
when was the Russian Revolution?
1917 - led by the Bolsheviks (communists:) in Russia
effect of WWI and the Russian Rev. on attitudes in America in the 1920s
takes a long time to undo the indoctrinating effect of propaganda, so Germans were still viewed as the enemy after WWI
Americans were fearful that the Rev or the war could happen to them
what was the ‘Red Scare’
began after the Russian Rev in 1917
was at its height between 1919 and 1921
- ‘Reds’ was the name given by Americans to people who held communist/anarchist views
- Americans feared that a Bolshevik revolution in America was imminent (coming)
the Red Scare - detail on how it links to strikes
was a wave of worker’s strikes in 1919 - 3600 strikes, with 400,000 workers
Americans were convinced that the people striking were communists who were trying to ruin their way of life
eg. general strike in Seattle in 1919
- was led by the ‘Industrial Workers of the World’
- seemed to the public like a ‘Red plot’
[__ consequences for workers = were locked out, sacked from their jobs, starved - was much violence towards the workers (with approval from officials!)
political effects of WWI on America
- isolationism (failed to join League of Nations)
- fear of radicalism eg. communism
- by 1919 America had it’s own communist party!
- anarchist bombs
how did America restrict immigration?
- legal quotas eg. the Immigration Quota Act
- psychological/cultural restrictions (these quotas gave the impression that immigrants were not welcome)
- increased scrutiny at processing, which happened at Ellis Island
[__ eg. literacy tests
detail on literacy tests
Immigration restriction introduced in 1917
- increased scrutiny - immigrants had to pass a series of reading and writing tests
allowed WASPS to maintain their dominance because many people attempting to immigrate came from places with poorer educations, so it was more difficult for them to pass the tests. Many were refused entry due to this
