HIS.3037 Immigrant Experience in America
This course will provide an overview of American immigration history from early settlement to the present. This includes: the motives and patterns of early western European and African settlement and chattel slavery, the treatment of indigenous tribes and the enactment of early exclusion laws in the New Republic. In the 19th century, the course will examine the "first great wave" of Irish, German Scandinavian, Chinese and later Japanese and Mexican immigrants. The contribution of these groups to urban development, transportation systems, overall industrialization and agricultural production will be examined in detail. The development and use of both Ellis and Angel Islands will also be discussed. In the 20th century, increasing government restriction will be examined in light of the "second great wave" of eastern and southern Europeans and Middle Easterners, and the impact of the Great Depression and World War II. The Post-War period will consider the introduction and reform of immigration/refugee policies, and the emergence of new groups including Hispanic, Asian, Middle Eastern and African immigrants. Finally, the course will examine changing immigration "flows" and policies and debates in an ever increasing globalizing world. The concepts of assimilation and acculturation will be discussed throughout the course.
LA