Nativism
Nativism, in general, refers to a policy or belief that protects or favors the interest of the native population of a country over the interests of immigrants. In the United States, greatest nativist sentiment coincided with the great waves of 19th-century European immigration on the East Coast and, to a lesser extent, with the arrival of Chinese immigrants on the West Coast.
Nineteenth-century nativism in the United States contained a strong anti-Catholic strain, since many of the newly arrived immigrants hailed from predominantly Roman Catholic countries. Although both religion and ethnicity helped identify targets of nativist bias, its motivations were often economic. The large waves of immigrants, many of whom were skilled tradesman, provided a large pool of inexpensive labor that threatened the well-being of native artisans and other workers.
The most prominent American nativist organization of the 19th century was the Know-Nothing party, which flourished originally in the 1840s and experienced a revival in the 1880s. The Ku Klux Klan was also notable for its nativist sentiment.
The late 20th century witnessed a revival of nativism, particularly in Western Europe and in parts of the United States. Following the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and the collapse of the economies of many Eastern European nations, workers from those countries emigrated to the West. Western European nations also experienced an influx of Asian immigrants, and the United States became home to many immigrants from Latin America. Consequently, France, Germany, Great Britain, and the United States, among others, imposed stricter immigration laws and controls on migrant labor
Bibliography: Higham, John, Strangers in the Land: Patterns of American Nativism, 1860–1925 (1988); Michaels, Walter B., Our America: Nativism, Modernism and Pluralism (1997); Perea, Juan F., ed., Imigrants Out! The New Nativism and the Anti-Immigrant Impulse in the United States (1996).
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Esperanza Rising
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Esperanza Rising
by Pam Muñoz RyanWhen Esperanza and Mama are forced to flee from their home in Mexico to a Mexican farm labor camp in California, they must adjust to a life without the fancy dresses and servants to which they were accustomed on Rancho de las Rosas.
Now they must confront the challenges of hard work, acceptance by their own people, and economic difficulties brought on by the Great Depression.
"A poignant look at the realities of immigration." — Horn Book
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Immigration Then & Now
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Immigration Then & Now
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Set Includes:
- Angel Island
- The Colors of Freedom
- If You Lived 100 Years Ago
- If Your Name Was Changed At Ellis Island
- Immigrant Kids
- The Industrial Revolution
- Jane Addams
- New Kids in Town: Oral Histories of Immigrant Teens
- Primary Sources Teaching Kit: Immigration
- Standing Tall: The Stories of
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