Notes

Outline

European Americans: assimilation & the persistence of ethnicity Between 1820-1920: 40 million immigrated from Europe to US period of vast changes: American Indians, African Americans, Mexicans, agrarianism, industrialism, world power

US industrialism relied on European immigration By WWI: 25% of all labor 1/2 of coal miners 2/3 workers in iron mines 3/4 textile workers

Why study European immigrants? No longer systematically discriminated against largely assimilated/Americanized are they still a minority group?

Why study European Immigrants? Ethnicity continues in importance 90% of whites name a European country as their origin, not the USA traditions still manifest: food, religion, politics some cities have ethnic neighborhoods still race/ethnicity still important to Euro-Ams

Why study Euro immigrants? Prejudices persist, e.g. negative nicknames & stereotypes different assimilation strategies and success levels add to our sociological understanding of immigration, race/ethnicity rise of Euro-Ams made possible by discrimination against racial minorities

Blauner’s theory at work Immigrant groups acculturate and integrate more rapidly than colonized groups (e.g. African Americans, Native Americans) or “mixed” groups (e.g. Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans) even if their journey not really voluntary (push/pull), still had more freedom & control over their own destiny

European origins 2 waves of immigration different countries of origin different time spans different religions, occupations, class

“Old” immigrants 1800-1850 Northern & western Europe Germans, Irish, Scots, Welsh, French, Danes, Norwegians, Swedes, Finns mostly Protestant (except Irish) shared values, e.g. Protestant Ethic--hard work, individualism, success high levels of educational credentials

“New” immigrants 1880-1920s Southern and eastern Europe Italians, Poles, Russians, Hungarians, Serbs, Ukrainians, Croats, Bulgarians mainly Catholic or Jewish mostly peasants, village-oriented =more discrimination

Dimensions that differentiated Euro immigrant groups from each other Religion--e.g. German Jews and Polish or Russian Jews Culture--e.g. village oriented and individualist oriented; modern and traditional Nationality--ethnic communities, religious differences based on nationality

Initial conditions of entry: Northern and Western Europeans Made up most of immigration before 1880 Anglo-Saxon mostly Protestant eased entry b/c much like dominant group skilled and educated brought resources e.g. $ settled: Midwest archetype of acculturation

2 examples Norwegians--small in absolute numbers, but sent more than any other Euro nation before 1880 (except Ireland); farmers, esp. northern Great Plains; chain immigration Germans--one of largest groups; farmers in Midwest; skilled artisans in urban Midwest; high occupational positions=rapid economic assimilation

Initial conditions of entry: Ireland, Southern & Eastern Euro Mostly peasants unskilled laborers few resources (e.g. no $) many sojourners, mostly male less likely to enter rural economy settled in cities in industrializing Northeast labor for the Industrial Revolution gender differences in jobs & experience

Women: Irish, S & E European Domestics work at young ages only menial jobs open to women wives took in boarders, gardened, sewed, laundry if couldn’t work outside home for pay taking in boarders contributed 25% of household income in 1911

Men: Irish, S & E Europeans Plentiful entry-level industrial jobs low wages, dangerous, insecure, no job ladder continued immigration = competition for jobs bottom of occupational structure their entire lives

Huddled masses? Hardly! Stereotype of huddled masses, victimized, uprooted chains & networks eased entry provided job leads, housing, friends, relatives, someone to meet them

Prejudice against Irish Religious & ethnic ridiculed, attacked campaigns against them mob attacks in neighborhoods Catholic churches burned employment discrimination, including refusal to hire

Prejudice against Italians Religious & ethnic victims of  violent attack, e.g. New Orleans 1891 including lynching of 9 innocents expressed as anti-Catholicism b/c seemed exotic, alien

Initial conditions of entry: Jewish immigrants Especially from Russia and other parts of Eastern Europe fleeing religious persecution arrived as family units urban areas of Northeast and Midwest, esp. NYC 60% between Boston & Philadelphia

Jewish immigrants & work barred from farming in old country skilled urban occupations--e.g. tailor unskilled, manual urban occupations--e.g. garment workers self-employed--e.g. bakers, candy shops, butchers, street peddlers retail shops created ethnic enclave

Jewish ethnic enclaves Primarily in Eastern cities dense networks: commercial, financial, social cooperation survived b/c: cohesion of group, willingness of family to work for free, commercial savvy and experience, cheap labor available w/in community, sources of credit available from w/in =rapid economic advancement

Jewish generations 1st generation financially successful 2nd generation acculturated, expanded family enterprises 2nd & 3rd generation pushed into professional education success in education Ýdiscrimination, e.g. quota @ Dartmouth today: surpass national averages in $, education, occupational prestige

Anti-Semitism in Europe Definition: Prejudice & racism against Jews vicious prejudice in Europe for centuries e.g. 2000 years persecuted as “Christ-killers” stereotyped as “crafty”, “penny-pinching” Nazi Holocaust--6 million killed European prejudice continues today

Anti-Semitism in US Before masses of immigration to US, was mild increasing immigration of Jews Ýincreasing prejudice, e.g. barring from public establishments like resorts by 1920s firmly established prejudice KKK linked with threats of Communism

Anti-Semitism post WWII Peaked just before WWII declined since then, but still evident Anti-Semitism is persistent  WHY?? Stereotypes embedded in culture passed down through generations continually resurfaces in new forms, e.g. 1990s a few members of  Nation of Islam

Jews & African Americans Some antipathy between these groups, e.g. 1991 Crown Heights incident studies: African-Americans as a whole no more prejudiced than rest of society origins of antipathy: some  Jewish leaders publicly oppose aff action quotas; Nation of Islam & some black leaders support Muslim opponents of Israel

Anti-Semitism today Prominent place in ideology of KKK & other extremist groups recent targeting of Jews intensifies during economic recession--blaming Jews for their prosperity Joe Lieberman--Democratic candidate for VP--changes to come??

Developments since 1990 Factors that affect assimilation for white ethnic European groups 1) degree of dissimilarity between immigrant group & dominant group 2) processes of ethnic succession & 2ndary structural assimilation 3) broad structural changes in American economy b/c of industrialization

Degree of dissimilarity Most significant : religion, language, cultural values, physical characteristics new groups most similar to dominant group experienced the least prejudice “more preferred” groups arrived first, “least desired” groups arrived last; thus prejudice against existing group faded as new groups arrived

Ethnic succession Definition: ways in which ethnic groups affect one another’s social class position; usually, groups pushed to higher status by new group arrival e.g. neighborhoods occupations

Ethnic Succession and Secondary structural assimilation:  e.g. the Irish 1st laborers to arrive in large numbers followed Northern & Western Europeans in jobs, social class structure, neighborhoods, politics followed by newer immigrant groups

Pathways of mobility: e.g. Irish Politics and political machine--e.g. Irish controlled municipal govts, hired their own labor unions--most early leaders were Irish; labor union leaders intermediaries btwn society & immigrant groups Catholic church--Irish were 1st Catholics in US, thus dominated church structure criminal networks

Ethnic succession: Criminal networks as pathway of mobility Prohibition--Italians & organized crime; Jewish vs. Italian control over bootlegging Irish and Germans before Italians ethnic succession: more recent urban arrivals, e.g.  African Americans & Hispanic Americans now into organized crime as pathway of mobility

Ethnic succession: sports as pathway to mobility 1900: Irish dominated boxing 1920: Italian boxers replaced them 1960: African American boxers 1980: Latino boxers note that at each stage, the group on the “bottom” of social hierarchy were the boxers =ethnic succession

Structural changes Industrialization is a continuous process structure of work continued to evolve these changes affected Euro immigrants structural mobility: changes in structure of economy that allowed some groups and individuals to “get ahead”; more important than individual effort

Structural mobility Mechanization & automation of workplace reduced supply of manual, blue collar jobs other jobs increased, e.g. service sector & white collar jobs since WWII service sector jobs: low pay, PT, unstable education prime link to better paying service jobs thus better educated Euro groups able to advance = structural mobility

Education & structural mobility Manual jobs decreased availability of education increased e.g. post-1930s HS more available GI Bill post-WWII spurred college attendance each generation of white ethnic Euro groups more educated than parents =human capital which Ý upward mobility

Euro immigrants & Colonized minority groups 100 years ago: African Americans under Jim Crow laws; Mexican Americans segregated and excluded; Native Americans militarily defeated, isolated, on reservations Euro immigrants generally much better off; WHY? Entered thru industrialization, not colonized

Euro immigrants & Colonized minority groups Most chose to immigrate, unlike African Americans no obvious physical differences between themselves & dominant group more control over their environment thus able to find more pathways to society

Euro immigrants & Colonized minority groups Why didn’t racial minorities follow Euro path? More severe discrimination against African Americans competition for jobs, e.g. labor unions excluded African Americans & Hispanics, used as strikebreakers

Assimilation of Euro immigrants By 1950s and 1960s, most had left ethnic neighborhoods these grandchildren & great grandchildren of  Euro immigrants are indistinguishable  from others in their social class & educational achievements importance  of white ethnic community faded

Persistence of ethnicity Especially for m/c Euro descendants, ethnicity is now symbolic expression of ethnicity not central to personal identity expression of ethnicity sporadic, e.g. St. P ethnicity is now voluntary & variable consistent with theories of assimilation: ethnicity weakened, fading, will eventually disappear

Ethnic revival Beginning in 1960s new interest in  ethnic origins symptoms: new interest in genealogy, increase in revised ethnic traditions, festivals & celebrations of ethnicities revived

Ethnic revival: why? No longer shameful to be ethnic Principle of third-generation interest (Hansen 1952) ideals of cultural pluralism activities of other minority groups stimulated revival, e.g. Black Power, Red Power, Chicanismo persistent ethnic competition, really class issues in disguise (Bell 1975)

Will prejudice & racism disappear? The recent intensification of ethnic identity suggests that race and ethnicity are still important in US still markers of division text says: a truly unprejudiced society will be possible only when the stratification system is no longer correlated with race and ethnicity