And Still They Come Immigrants and American Society 1920 to the 1990s

In this distinctive study of the impact of immigration and ethnicity on twentieth-century America, Barkan thoughtfully examines the changing composition of our immigrant populations, highlighting the ways in which certain facets of the struggle to adapt to American society have persisted from the 1920s until the 1990s. Going beyond the immigrant experience, Barkan considers the ways in which second- and third-generation Americans stress integration, even as they cling to important components of their ethnicity, not only adapting to American culture but shaping it. Featuring a moving photographic essay and coming alive with first-person accounts, And Still They Come is certain to provide important food for thought as Americans once more consider the narrowing gateways to the nation.

Elliott Robert Barkan is Professor Emeritus of History and Ethnic Studies at California State University. He lives in Corona, California.

Foreword V

List of Tables and Figures X

Acknowledgments XII

Introduction 1

PART ONE 7

From Postwar to the Eve of World War: 1920-1940 8

Chapter One: The 1920s: Halting the Immigrant Floodtide 9

Adopting Quotas and National Origins 9

The Struggle Over American Citizenship 15

Chapter Two: Adapting to America: The Interwar Years 18

The Not-So-Roaring Twenties 18

Earning a Living 24

Ties that Bind: Homelands and Ethnic Institutions 32

Language, Culture, and the Second Generation 36

Leadership, Citizenship, and Ethnic Politics 40

Chapter Three: The Thirties in Crisis: Repatriation, Refugees, and the New Deal 44

Repatriation: Mexicans and Filipinos 45

Culture, Politics, and the Labor Movement 48

Anti-Semitism and the Refugee Question 50

PART TWO 55

From World War to Cold War: 1940-1965

Chapter Four: Waging War—At Home and Abroad 58

Regulation, Registration, Internment 58

Waging War on the Homefront 64

The Dilemmas of Ethnicity in Wartime 67

Chapter Five: Breaking New Ground: War Brides, DPs, and Refugees 72

Innovations: War Brides and DPs 73

Reveling and Unraveling National Origins 76

America’s Migrants: With and Without Papers 80

Chapter Six: Immigrants and American Society at Midcentury 86

An Overview: Immigrants and Ethnics 87

Immigrants and Ethnics: Urban, Suburban, Rural 91

New Immigrants, New Americans, Old Issues 100

Immigrants and American Citizenship 104

PART THREE 111

America in a Rimless World: 1965-1995 112

Chapter Seven: In the Era of the Cold War and Beyond: Immigrants and Ethnics 115

Legislative Reforms, 1965-1986 115

An Overview of Immigration, Documented and Undocumented, 1965-1995 119

Female Immigration 128

The Immigrant Experience 131

The Immigrant Experience 131

Ties to the Homeland 139

Chapter Eight: Immigrant and Ethnic Adaptation in the Late Twentieth Century: Diversities Within Diversity 144

The White Ethnic “Revival” 146

Religion, Language, culture, and Community 151

The Pillars of Occupation and Education 157

Brain Drain or Reciprocal Gain? 164

Citizenship and Politics: To Do or Not to Do 166

Contrasting Studies of Ethnic Activism: Japanese Americans and Chicanos and Other Latinos 172

Chapter Nine: The 1990s: New Directions or Full Circle? 178

1990: A New Census and New Immigration Reforms 179

The “Costs” of Immigration—Legal and Undocumented 183

The Challenge and the Toll of Immigration 190

Appendix: Additional Tables 197

Bibliographical Essay 215

Index 251

Photo Essay / follows p. 126

Photo Credits 261

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