Adversities Faced by the New Immigrants in the U.S.
New Immigrants
During the mid to late nineteenth century over 10 million European immigrants came to the United States. Most of these immigrants settled in the northeast and the Midwest looking for jobs and a better life. Many came to realize that there expectations were misguided and were forced to work long days for low wages and live in slums. There were many hardships and challenges involved when coming to America that many people were not aware of. Immigrants looked at America as a new start and endless opportunity’s, what they did not know was they weren’t welcomed by the natives and poverty would plague them.
At the end of the nineteenth century immigration began to change. In the past a majority of the immigrants were from Ireland, Great Britain and Germany, now a majority were coming from Italy, Hungry, and Russia. This shift in immigration made the native people uneasy and bitter. As the immigrants poured off the boats in the harbors natives would greet them by screaming derogatory comments and throwing food at them. Natives viewed the immigrants as inferior and in their eyes were equal to or less then the Negro. Newspapers would depict the immigrants as criminals and scum. Many natives went as far as saying that they were a threat to democracy and did not deserve liberty. Politicians would take advantage of these immigrants by promising them work and shelter to get their votes.
Once the immigrants made it to America they would make their way into big cities where they could find work. Urban areas were becoming over populated and immigrants were forced to live in slums where poverty and disease were running rampant. Multiple families sharing a single apartment was not an uncommon practice. Many of these apartments dint have running water and in some cases lacked toilets and ventilation. In the 1890s a man by the name Jacob Riis began writing a book called “How the other half lives”. Through the use of recent invention of flash photography he
During the mid to late nineteenth century over 10 million European immigrants came to the United States. Most of these immigrants settled in the northeast and the Midwest looking for jobs and a better life. Many came to realize that there expectations were misguided and were forced to work long days for low wages and live in slums. There were many hardships and challenges involved when coming to America that many people were not aware of. Immigrants looked at America as a new start and endless opportunity’s, what they did not know was they weren’t welcomed by the natives and poverty would plague them.
At the end of the nineteenth century immigration began to change. In the past a majority of the immigrants were from Ireland, Great Britain and Germany, now a majority were coming from Italy, Hungry, and Russia. This shift in immigration made the native people uneasy and bitter. As the immigrants poured off the boats in the harbors natives would greet them by screaming derogatory comments and throwing food at them. Natives viewed the immigrants as inferior and in their eyes were equal to or less then the Negro. Newspapers would depict the immigrants as criminals and scum. Many natives went as far as saying that they were a threat to democracy and did not deserve liberty. Politicians would take advantage of these immigrants by promising them work and shelter to get their votes.
Once the immigrants made it to America they would make their way into big cities where they could find work. Urban areas were becoming over populated and immigrants were forced to live in slums where poverty and disease were running rampant. Multiple families sharing a single apartment was not an uncommon practice. Many of these apartments dint have running water and in some cases lacked toilets and ventilation. In the 1890s a man by the name Jacob Riis began writing a book called “How the other half lives”. Through the use of recent invention of flash photography he