Immigration Story(Chaptet 13)

        Although I consider myself and my family “American”, I wouldn’t be able to call myself an American today, if it wasn’t for my relatives who struggled and worked hard to arrive here before me. My relatives have traveled from many places, and today my family continues to incorporate cultural beliefs and traditions into our religion, household, and holiday meals. I called my mom to verify where my family descended from and their stories of immigration. However, I have often heard these stories before when my family comes together. The following are a few stories of my family’s struggles with immigration.

            The first story is about my Great Grandfather on my grandmother’s side. He lived in Czechoslovakia. In the early 1900’s, when Austria conquered Czechoslovakia, the soldiers demanded that the citizens would fight in the war for Austria. My Great Grandfather refused to fight alongside with Austria and so he escaped to France. From there, he entered Canada, and then finally arrived to the United States.

            The second story is about my Great, Great, Great, Grandfather on my Grandpa’s side. He came to the United Stated from Russia in the 1800’s. He started a family and began making his fortune from reindeer herding. His family at the time had no idea why he left his family to come to the United States, but years later my Great, Great, Grandfather discovered he had a sister. They realized the reason why my Great, Great, Great, Grandfather came to the United States was because he impregnated a girl and was disowned from his family in Russia.

            The last story I will tell is in my opinion the most interesting. This story is about my Grandfather’s Mother’s relatives. In the 1800’s, my (great, great, etc…) Grandfather lived in Holland. His name was Joseph Connors, and his family was very wealthy and had the largest amount of windmills in Holland. He decided to leave Holland and continue his life in the United States. He settled down in New Brunswick, New York. Joseph Connors fought with Lincoln during the Civil War and was ranked one below a general. After the war, he was honored with his own city and it was named “Connorsville, WI.” That’s where he stayed and began to raise a family and a farm. Many of my family members still live there today.

            Migration from one country to another has consistently been done for one main reason, because these citizens are in search for a better life somewhere else. This hope has inspired people from all over the world and from numerous decades to leave their homes in search for a better life. Many decide to relocate to “The Land of The Free”, or more formally known as the United States of America. Immigration has greatly changed, since my ancestors arrived long ago when immigrants were coming from mostly European countries. For example, today there is a growing rate of nonwhite and non-English speaking immigrants entering the country. If my ancestors immigrated to the United States today there are many challenges they would have to face. According to the textbook, U.S. residents have always had a love-hate relationship with immigrants. When the economy is doing well, immigrants are welcomed by residents to take unwanted jobs. When the economy is doing poorly, U.S. residents do not want immigrants and they begin to blame immigrants for economic troubles and accuse them of taking American jobs. Since, our economy is in the middle of a recession my ancestors would be unwelcomed by most U.S. residents. Unless my ancestors are highly educated, they will most likely have to take the lowest wages of jobs. Even, if they are fit for a position a U.S. born resident would most likely receive the job instead. Not speaking English, will also be a problem for my ancestors in finding a career, home, and interacting with others. These are all struggles my ancestors would have to face in today’s society.

                Immigration has shaped U.S. society since the beginning. The United States is essentially, the land of immigrants. So, why are we so unwelcoming to immigrants today? I believe U.S. born citizens feel a sense of entitlement to this land. We forget too often about our own immigration story. We forget that we took Native American’s land, and we’re just like immigrants arriving today. I feel another reason why the U.S. can be so harsh to immigrants is because we don’t want our country to change. The book says we expect immigrants to assimilate into the American culture, and when they don’t many Americans are unhappy about it. Americans also don’t want our economy to change, and they believe immigrants are taking “American” jobs. Racism can also be a contributor to why some Caucasian Americans dislike immigrants. Some American citizens believe that immigrants are the enemy and blame them for our economic hardships, but the reality is they’re here, just like our immigrants came before us, to find a better life for themselves and their families.