Urbanization Cities and Immigrants Standards SS 912 A

Urbanization Cities and Immigrants

Standards • SS. 912. A. 3. 2: Examine the social, political, and economic causes, course, and consequences of the second Industrial Revolution that began in the late 19 th century. End of Course Exam Benchmark. • SS. 912. A. 3. 7: Compare the experience of European immigrants in the east to that of Asian immigrants in the west (the Chinese Exclusion Act, Gentlemen's Agreement with Japan) • SS. 912. A. 3. 11: Analyze the impact of political machines in United States cities in the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries.

Immigration • Old Immigrants- came before 1880 - from Western Europe (England, Ireland, Germany, France) • Came to escape religious and political persecution or to find new economic opportunities. • Spoke English • Protestant

Immigration • New Immigrants- 1880 -1924 -from Eastern Europe and Mediterranean (Italy, Greece, Poland, Russia) • Did not speak English • Catholic/Jewish • Escape religious persecution

Establishing a New Life • Traveled across the Atlantic in steerage (cheapest class on ship) • Most landed in Ellis Island, NYC • Could be sent back if they had poor health • Found unskilled jobs • Settled in ghettos (urban neighborhood with immigrants of one nationality-Little Italy, Chinatown) where people spoke language, had same religion, same newspapers

Americanization • Americanized-assimilate into mainstream American society by learning its values and behaviors • Children began to assimilate (made similar to other Americans)

Asia • Pushed by warfare and economic hard times in China • Pulled by the lure of gold, later railroad work • Chinese Immigrants were needed to build transcontinental railroad but once it was completed, they became discriminated

• In 1850 s, a white man murdered a Chinese man and was sent to jail after other Chinese testified against him. California Supreme Court ruled to free him, starting a trend of legal discrimination and abuse • US Naturalization Act of 1870 - only whites and African descent can become US citizens • 1882 - Chinese Exclusion Act-made a ban on immigration for 10 years • Any Chinese immigration was processed at Angel Island in San Francisco

• Japanese pushed by changes in Japan and pulled by lure of greater economic opportunity • Racial prejudice of segregated schools in San Francisco forced a negotiation called “Gentlemen's Agreement” in 1907. • The Japanese government agreed to prevent the further immigration of workers

Nativism • Nativism-the belief that native-born Americans were superior to others, and that immigrants and their diverse cultural influences were undesirable. • True American=native-born, white, English-speaking, Protestant • Anti-immigration societies began to spring up across America, KKK reemerges, effect immigration laws

Cities • Urbanization-the movement of people from country to city • In 1865 most Americans lived in countryside (farming movement) • By 1920 half lived in cities. NY, Chicago, Philadelphia had over a million residents

Reasons for Urbanization • Push/Pull factors • Railroads and improved roads made it easier for people to move to cities. Cities like Chicago and Atlanta grew because of this. • Many people attracted by the city life and opportunity • Rise of factories and the needs of growing urban populations created more jobs. • Uncertainty of farm life, new farm machinery pushed people away from the farms

Cities Face New Problems • Cities grew too fast and cities lacked services (hospitals, schools, fire, police, garbage) • Overcrowding and slums 1. Tenements-low cost rental housing barely meeting minimal living requirements • Lack of sanitation and pollution=people died from diseases • Traffic congestion • Political corruption

Political Machines • Political machine- an organization controlled by a “boss” that gets citizens to vote for its candidate on election day. People worked for the “machine” in exchange for political favors and other rewards • Bosses provided jobs and services to immigrants and other poor residents in return for their votes. • Machine makes profit by overcharging on city contracts • Tammany Hall in NYC-most famous political machine • Graft-using political influence for personal gain

Political Machines • William “Boss” Tweed was the most famous boss • Thomas Nast-made anti machine political cartoons