How Immigrants to the United States Overcame Hardships
Laurence Kwock
AP United States History
January 8, 2017
America is known as the land of equal opportunity. Many immigrants flock to the land which promises them a new life, in which they can prosper and develop a safe future. The Constitution grants many rights to its citizens, as shown in its bill of rights. However, not all immigrants who come to America experience the same things. Although immigrants faced opposing forces such as a language barrier and discrimination, they were able to overcome these obstacles in order to take a stand in an evolving America. Immigration is one of the most important decisions that one can make in their life. They are effectively …show more content…
During the nineteenth and twentieth, immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe boarded ships which took them to the United States. After a long voyage, their new life awaited them at Ellis Island, New York. There, immigrants were examined and screened medically. Examiners also asked questions concerning criminal records, origin, and America. If the person being interrogated was unable to answer the long list of 29 questions, they would have been sent home to their home country at the ship’s expense. The ones who were prepared to answer the questions had their papers approved and free to leave Ellis Island in order to roam their newfound land, however, they were not yet considered …show more content…
The third immigration wave, which lasted from about 1881-1920, is the most prominent. This time period saw the introduction of several immigration laws which were purposed to restrict the flow of immigrants from asia and from europe. Many of these immigrant laws were influenced by the ideology of “nativism”, which was placing the needs of native members of one’s country before the needs of immigrants. A general distrust of foreigners grew amongst americans and it found it way to congress which influenced its choices on the multiple immigration acts which were passed. One major group of immigrants that were targeted where the Chinese who came to America looking for a new opportunity. For example, in 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed in order to prevent competition between Chinese miners and American miners in California. In essence, this act excluded chinese people who were “skilled and unskilled laborers and employed in mining” from immigrating to the United States. After the Chinese Exclusion Act had expired, it had been renewed alongside with the Geary Act, forced all Chinese people to hold “certificates of residence.” As evident in the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Geary Act, the U.S. government did not hesitate to discriminate a single race to protect their idea of
Laurence Kwock
AP United States History
January 8, 2017
America is known as the land of equal opportunity. Many immigrants flock to the land which promises them a new life, in which they can prosper and develop a safe future. The Constitution grants many rights to its citizens, as shown in its bill of rights. However, not all immigrants who come to America experience the same things. Although immigrants faced opposing forces such as a language barrier and discrimination, they were able to overcome these obstacles in order to take a stand in an evolving America. Immigration is one of the most important decisions that one can make in their life. They are effectively …show more content…
During the nineteenth and twentieth, immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe boarded ships which took them to the United States. After a long voyage, their new life awaited them at Ellis Island, New York. There, immigrants were examined and screened medically. Examiners also asked questions concerning criminal records, origin, and America. If the person being interrogated was unable to answer the long list of 29 questions, they would have been sent home to their home country at the ship’s expense. The ones who were prepared to answer the questions had their papers approved and free to leave Ellis Island in order to roam their newfound land, however, they were not yet considered …show more content…
The third immigration wave, which lasted from about 1881-1920, is the most prominent. This time period saw the introduction of several immigration laws which were purposed to restrict the flow of immigrants from asia and from europe. Many of these immigrant laws were influenced by the ideology of “nativism”, which was placing the needs of native members of one’s country before the needs of immigrants. A general distrust of foreigners grew amongst americans and it found it way to congress which influenced its choices on the multiple immigration acts which were passed. One major group of immigrants that were targeted where the Chinese who came to America looking for a new opportunity. For example, in 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed in order to prevent competition between Chinese miners and American miners in California. In essence, this act excluded chinese people who were “skilled and unskilled laborers and employed in mining” from immigrating to the United States. After the Chinese Exclusion Act had expired, it had been renewed alongside with the Geary Act, forced all Chinese people to hold “certificates of residence.” As evident in the Chinese Exclusion Act and the Geary Act, the U.S. government did not hesitate to discriminate a single race to protect their idea of