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Incorporating New Perspectives into an Immigration Course
PHYLIS CANCILLA MARTINELLI
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HOMO SAPIENS HAVE migrated since time immemorial as they spread out from Africa. Groups wandered by foot and rafts to ultimately inhabit most of the planet. This migration was, broadly speaking, either voluntary or involuntary. Some people were simply curious about what was over the next ridge. Others, however, moved under pressure. Sometimes a clash between newcomers and a settled group, clashes within a band, or overpopulation meant one group was pushed out; in other cases, diseases or natural disasters sent people looking for a new place. According to this rough classification, Native Americans were an early group of voluntary migrants to the Americas; in contrast, those who came as indentured servants or slaves were involuntary. As mass migration began in the 1800s, many—like my Italian forebears—left looking for a better life; others, however, left under duress. |
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A tie to my family background eventually led me to teach a course on immigration. My master's degree and doctorate focused my teaching on urban studies and ethnic groups. However, in the 1990s, when immigration emerged as a major topic in the popular news and academia, it was time for me to develop a course. Media articles emphasizing the growing numbers of new immigrants captured public interest and concern, which spilled over into class discussions of social problems. Most students viewed increasing immigration from a temperocentric perspective; they had little knowledge of the tsunami of immigrants, predominantly European, that swept into the United States between 1830 and 1930. As an educator I wanted to explore some recurring questions about whether immigrants were desirable and how they fit into the United States. I incorporated three central areas important, in my mind, to understanding migration. Certainly, the historical process is essential for comprehending immigration, as is the social psychological impact of migration on groups and individuals and a critical exploration of the costs and benefits of immigration, which looks at how immigrants are treated as well as at their impact on existing social systems. |
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HISTORICAL PROCESS | |
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As a sociologist I would be justified in using a truncated version of the historical process, with the 1960s as the starting place to examine contemporary immigration. In that decade a major reform of immigrant legislation, which for some time had been deliberately capped at a low level to exclude southern and eastern Europeans and Asians, was expanded. The Hart-Cellar Act of 1965 did away with the discriminatory national quotas established in 1924; furthermore, the notion of "family reunification" was introduced into policy changes. However, I think it is important to give the students a broader history of immigration. So I begin with the massive population changes generated by the Industrial Revolution, which is the baseline of history for many sociologists. The unprecedented human migration we are experiencing stems from fundamental economic, technological, political, and demographic changes of this era. |
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It is also important for students to understand the expansive sweep of immigration laws and restrictions that stem from this country's deep ambivalence regarding immigration. Starting with the controversial Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, numerous presidents and Congresses have established policies related to immigration and naturalization. Tensions inherent in the growth of this nation have played out in many different ways. The country began as a mixture of many cultures; numerous Native American, Dutch, French, Spanish, German, Scots Irish, and various African groups occupied the area.1 When a national identity emerged, the core culture was shaped by English-speaking, white, Protestant Anglo Saxons. They saw a need to attract talented individuals from abroad to lend their intellect and labor to the process of growing a nation. Still, these newcomers found acceptance into the core group difficult, due to an abiding suspicion of foreigners. |
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