“City of Dreams”, a true rhetoric for the promise, hopes and dreams harbored in the inception of New York City. Through a combination of enthralling narratives and elaborate description the author, Tyler Anbinder successfully, arguably, recounts the vivid and long history of America and its immigrants. The author successfully does a cross-sectional analysis of what he perceives as the traces of the first America immigration, by the Dutch, in the 17 th century. He additionally elaborates on the adoption of restrictive immigration policies and the subsequent reluctance in adverse views towards refuges and immigrants induced by the Second World War in addition to the holocaust events during this period.
Tyler Anbinder begins the narration on the British colonization of America and their settlement in New York which saw to the arrival of African slaves, during the infamous slave trade. This is supported by the fact that 15 percent of the population of New York encompassed African Slaves by the turn of the 17 th Century. The Dutch, escaping a harsh political climate in Europe, and more specifically, Scotland immigrated to New York, initially to work as servants for the Brits who had colonized New York. The Dutch immigration as the author vividly describes is commemorated with sad details of the grueling experience in fever-ridden ships and poor weather conditions. The arrival of record numbers of Dutch immigrants caused the English administration to recruit immigrants from England in a bid to induce a balance in the population, then largely comprised of immigrants.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
What is more, immigration into America was also further spurred by the arrival of Jews during mid-17 th Century, fleeing from persecution in Brazil. The growing numbers of immigrants in New York as implied by the book was as a result of religious tolerance in New York which so the co-existence of a religiously and culturally diverse population. The author, continues to indicate the second wave of immigration into America, impelled by a state of violence and deprivation in Europe, which saw to mass immigration of Europeans, largely Germans and the Irish into America.
Tyler vividly reports how events in Europe during the turn of the 19 th Century, subsequent to the American Revolution saw to an increase in New York’s immigrant community. The influx in immigrants mainly in the form of refugees in addition to those seeking, to exploit opportunities of a rapidly growing commercial and economic hub of the period, after the Revolution saw to a tenfold increase in the population of New York.
However, this trend met seemingly unassailable challenges during the period of the Abolitionist, which was accompanied by the garnering of widespread immigrant support from both the black slaves and the German community. This move was opposed by nativists, mainly Irishmen who largely opposed abolitionism and rather supported slavery and the continued oppression of individuals of the black race. Additionally, the author does not hold punches in demonstrating the role that the church, more specifically; the Catholic church, played during Abolitionist movement. The author elaborates on the church’s opposition of abolitionists’ activists, which led to Irish nativists backing their opposition to abolitionists with the church. Furthermore, nativists opposed the immigration of Asians, leading to mass incarceration of Asian immigrants during the 19 th century.
The hospitality of America to immigrants is however revitalized and demonstrated by the author, placed during the dusk of the 19 th century which saw the admission of large numbers of immigrants mainly comprised of Jews both from Italy and from Russia, where the author traces his roots. The author demonstrates the laxity in immigration laws during this period in addition to a favorable political and economic environment for immigrants to make a living, and subsequently a life in the 19 th century New York City.
However, the laxity in policy subsided during the turn of the 20 th century which saw the restriction in addition to denial of admittance to record numbers of refugees and immigrants. Furthermore, the situation was worsened, as the author recounts, by the National Origins Act which imposed restrictions on immigrants from most regions of the world. The settlers and early immigrants were however more lenient on Western Europe, which saw admission of Europeans coupled Russians as refugees and immigrants while other races were denied immigration passes into the United States.
The harsh attitudes in addition to degraded views about immigrants constantly and gradually gained traction within earlier settlers of America, with the early 20 th century seeing to prevalence of the notion of “illegal immigrant”. This, the author notes, was largely precipitated by mass immigration into New York both by foreigners and by Americans, mostly blacks from the South. Tyler additionally elaborates on the impact the Second World War brought on attitudes towards immigrants and racial tolerance. Racial tolerance and empathy towards immigrants and refugees increased, which saw to the influx of immigrant numbers during this period.
The author through meticulous descriptions and elaborate recount of events manages both to capture the attention of his audience in addition to delving into defining details of the immigration rhetoric of America. However, it is a point of contention on whether the definition of immigrants as entailed in the book, maintains a consistent rapport. This is given the fact that the Dutch and English settlers were hardly described by most as being immigrants. However, all in all, the book does provide a satisfactory review of the relationship between America and its immigrants, all through the relevant history.
