Immigration Field Trip Reflection

Immigration Field Trip Reflection

PART I - From Heaven to Home:

In this exhibit, I was told more about Jewish history and their struggles to make a substancial life in America. In 1654, many Jews fled their hometowns due to violet attacks towards them, poor living conditions, and from Nazi prosecution. To get to America, most had to travel from Spain all the way to Portugal, then would get deported to South America where they later arrived in New York or 'Amsterdam'. Arriving, were 23 adults and children which later led the way for the many immigrants coming to America. Most Jews coming to America from the 1820's-1923, were mostly German and Austrian Jews. From the 1880's-1923, Eastern Europeans were fleeing from the Nazi prosecution.

When coming to America, the Jews began lived in small houses, housing as many people possible, and being put to work in jobs where they got very little pay. They Jews fought for equality for 122 years; from 1654-1776. At one point, General Grant attempeted to abolish all Jewsish people from the states of Kentucky and Tennessee but president Lincoln Refused. Once George Washington was the 1st American president, the 2 thousand Jews that were currently residing in America turned to George Washington to assure them that the goverment would protect religious liberty.

In 1790, president George Washinton stated, "Shall give to bigitry no sanction, to persecution no assistance." By the 1860's the Jews were still fighting for their religious rights and the Civil War broke out. By that time in history, 7 thousand Jews fought for thr north and liberty from slavery, while 3 thousand fought in the southern regions. I found out that Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel and Martin Luther King walked in the Cilvil Rights march together. For a long time, the poeple of the Jewish religion had to pay to be a part of the navy and army to fight for their country.

After many years, the had this rule abolished. Something else that facinated me, was hearing that 20 thousand Jewish woman broke into the butcher shops and tossed all of their meat into the streets. It surprised me when I heard that mostly woman were boy-cotting the butcher markets, because the kosher meats - which they were eating at the time - were doubled in price. After a few years, they finally dropped the price from 18 cents to 14 cents. Although it was not much, they were satisfied and the boy-cotting finally ended.

Slowly but surely, America was making process. In 1838, Rebecca Gratz founded the first sunday school and in 1841, the first Jew sat in congress. Also, in 1906, Oscur Stratus becames the first Jew to be a part of the U.S cabinet and to believe it or not, the Jews helped pineer most of the things that began America; such as theatre, rock and roll, and even hollywood. Jews were the bigginging of Las Vegas and were even a part of the first mafia.

Overall, I learned that without the Jewish people settling and immigrating to America, we wouldn't be the America that we are today. Without all their sacrifice and strive to make their new home country the best one, the America we live in now, would probably have more discrimination, more religious prosecutions, and a country without American theatre.

PART II - Children of Immigrants:

Quote:
"I believe as an individual I can help America achieve its goals. I remember last year I helped collect canned foods for the soup kitchen. Also I raised money when the Twin Towers fells. I believe things like this may seems little but can mout to larger and bigger things." -Zainab Sozzer, Pakistan

I choose this quote because it sends the message that even the smallest things make a difference. Wether it is helping someone up off the ground, to raising money and sending it to a charity, as long as we help one another out, then we will be passing on helping hands which we know America is known for.

Photograph:
I choose a phtograph that was taken in 2000 and that had two kids - both under the age of 7 or 6 - and riding one of those electronic elephant rides in Chinatown, New York. You could tell that they were both sibilings and that the younger one was clingging to his brothers weist. The first thing I saw were the expression on the kids eyes. They seemed very relaxed in the situation that they were in and I could see people waling by and little markets in the background which I interpurated as if the phtographer were trying to indicate that their life was speeding by but that they were lving in the monet, because their faces were completly focused.