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Immigrant New York- Past, Present and Future. Craig L. Dicker, Ph.D. Office of English Language Programs U.S. Embassy, Budapest DickerCL@state.gov. The Ellis Island Experience. Foreign-Born Change: Top Ten Countries 1980-2000. Rank. Country. 1980. Country. 1990. Country. 2000. 1.
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Immigrant New York- Past, Present and Future Craig L. Dicker, Ph.D. Office of English Language Programs U.S. Embassy, Budapest DickerCL@state.gov
Foreign-Born Change: Top Ten Countries 1980-2000 Rank Country 1980 Country 1990 Country 2000 1 Italy 283,990 Dom.Rep. 241,941 Dom.Rep. 408,086 2 Germany 134,991 Italy 190,305 China * 301,735 3 Dom.Rep. 131,313 Jamaica 146,829 Jamaica 226,470 4 Poland 113,262 China 128,133 Sov.Un. * 189,903 5 Sov.Un. 112,725 Sov.Un. 98,576 Mexico 161,189 6 Jamaica 107,130 Germany 92,322 Italy 147,729 7 U.K. 83,736 Poland 88,230 Guyana 142,154 8 Canada 73,142 Haiti 87,215 Ecuador 139,226 9 China 68,839 Colombia 82,767 Haiti 125,475 10 Ireland 66,639 Guyana 81,386 Colombia 111,727 All Others 1,213,171 All Other 1,614,157 All Others 1,914,439 Total 2,388,938 Total 2,851,861 Total 3,868,133 * 2000 Census data for China include Hong Kong & Taiwan;Soviet Union data include Russia, Ukraine & Belarus.
Speakers of Foreign Languages in New York (2004 census)Spanish- 2, 416,045Chinese- 304, 155Italian- 294,270Russian- 218, 765French- 174, 080French-Creole- 114,770Yiddish- 113,513Polish- 111,730Korean- 102, 105German- 92, 685
Policy of homogeneity- breaking down cultural differences to create sameness and therefore national united Equated with cultural imperialism and related to theories of cultural superiority Based on a mono-cultural view of a nation state Policy of multiculturalism- all cultures are equally valid and therefore must be respected and preserved Americans are not united by any common belief or value system- only via their diversity Based on the multi-cultural view of the nation state Cultural Relativism Cultural Determinism
American Solution: Assimilation • Based on idea of acquiring certain “national” habits and attitudes while respecting and preserving most differences (those that don’t conflict w/ the national habits/mores) • Based on common principles and mutual understandings that transcend differences and serve to define the “American” character (note role of Civic Education in US educational system) • The maintenance of a common foundation allows the flourishing differences that have come to characterize the American experience
Immigrant (voluntary) minorities European-Americans Cubans Vietnamese, Hmong and other SE Asian groups Dominicans, Nicaraguans and most other Latin Americans, et. Caste-like (involuntary minorities) Native Americans Puerto Ricans African-Americans Mexican Americans Ogbu (l986) Theory on “Making It”
Immigrant Minorities - voluntarily come to the US for various reasons (religious and political freedom, economic opportunity) Home culture remains in tact “Mainstream American Culture” seen as offering opportunities for social and economic advancement In first generation or two, function on parallel systems (home/community vs. school/work) Caste-like Minorities Involuntarily come under U.S. jurisdiction Frequently, home culture is deliberately dismantled or looked down upon by mainstream America “Mainstream American Culture” seen as a threat to their identity and uniqueness Often set up a “counter-culture” aimed at resisting further assimilation and set up in opposition to the mainstream American values and norms
A “nation” goes beyond political borders A nation is united by a common language, history, culture, literature A nation is something you must be born into Nationalism is love for your “nation” “patriotism” is respect and loyalty to a political state “patriotism” implies dedication to and respect for a set of legal, political and economic institutions You don’t have to be born into a society to be patriotic Garston Ash’s “nationalism” vs. “patriotism”
The Greek Settlement in Astoria • 1927: first 16 newly arrived Greek families settle in Astoria, Queens • 1940: first Greek church (now called St. Demetrios Cathedral) completed (today it is one of 24 Greek churches in Queens • 1958: first Greek language elementary school opened • 1980: first Greek language secondary school opened • Population: 30,000 Greeks in Astoria, another 30,000 in Whitestone and Bayside sections of Queens
The Chinese Reality • In 2000, over 75% of the 281,000 Chinese in NYC were foreign born, most having arrived in the last 10 years • 42% of the Chinese adults are pre-literate. Over 60% speak little or no English • The per capita income is 25% less than the average for the city and 22% of Chinese live below the poverty line • Yet, nearly all Chinese children graduate from secondary school and over 75% go on for further education.
Brighton Beach Highlights • Population: 150,000 • First wave of Russian Jewish immigrants- early 1900s, second wave of Russian-Jewish immigrants- 1970s • 80% of the 350 businesses, including Russian saunas, restaurants and clubs, are Russian owned • First Yiddish theater (New Brighton Theater) established here in l919
Muslim Realities in NYC • 350,000 to 500,000 Muslims live in New York City • extremely diverse, representing more than 50 distinct national, racial, cultural, ethnic backgrounds, and sects • can be divided into three major communities: the South Asian (Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi, Afghani), the Arab, and the African-American.
New York’s Caribbean people • First wave came in early 1900s and settled in Harlem- soon making up 20% of the population • In l930s, l940s, many moved from overcrowded Harlem to Brooklyn in search of single and two family homes (note: Colin Powell’s family moved to the Bronx instead) • 1960s-70s: Caribbean neighborhood spreads from West Bedford and East Stuyvesant to Flatbush and Crown Heights, displacing a predominantly Jewish community.
