HIST 3800 - U.S. Immigration, Race, and Ethnicity

Hours: 3
Most of us either came to these shores ourselves or have ancestors who came to the New World at some point in the not-too-distant past. It is often the case, however, that we might know something (and often not that much) about the experience of our own families and ancestors, but little about why other racial, ethnic, and national groups came to the United States, what they encountered when they arrived, and how they adapted—or did not adapt–to life in the United States. This blind spot helps create the conflicted feelings that so many Americans have about immigrants and immigration even as they celebrate the country as a “nation of immigrants.” Exploring this blind spot by examining the experiences of a wide array of immigrant groups. Focusing on Irish, Asian, African, southern and eastern European, and Latin American immigrants and migrants to the United States, and touching on many issues: the factors that have driven immigration, immigrant work, family, and community life, racial identity and discrimination, ethnicity and assimilation, and the history of immigration restriction and exclusion.

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HIST 3800 - U.S. Immigration, Race, and Ethnicity