Working Toward Whiteness: How America's Immigrants Became White: The Strange Journey from Ellis Island to the Suburbs by
David R. Roediger recounts how ethnic groups considered white today--including Jewish-, Italian-, and Polish-Americans--were once viewed as undesirables by the WASP establishment in the United States. They eventually became part of white America, through the nascent labor movement, New Deal reforms, and a rise in home-buying. A disturbing, necessary, masterful history [that] ... uses the past to illuminate the present.
The History of White People by
Telling perhaps the most important forgotten story in American history, eminent historian Nell Irvin Painter guides us through more than two thousand years of Western civilization, illuminating not only the invention of race but also the frequent praise of "whiteness" for economic, scientific, and political ends. A story filled with towering historical figures, The History of White People closes a huge gap in literature that has long focused on the non-white and forcefully reminds us that the concept of "race" is an all-too-human invention whose meaning, importance, and reality have changed as it has been driven by a long and rich history of events.
Making the Irish American by
Featuring 29 classic and original essays on the turbulent, vital, and fascinating story of the Irish in America. All it takes is one St. Patrick's Day in the United States to realize that the Irish did not dissolve into the melting pot, they took possession of it. Combining original research with reprints of classic works, these essays and articles offer a rich understanding of the Irish immigrant impact on America, and America's impact on the Irish immigrant.
How the Scots Made America by
Ever since they first set foot in the new world alongside the Viking explorers the Scots have left their mark. Historian Michael Fry shows how Americans of Scottish heritage helped shape this country, from its founding days to the present. They were courageous pioneers, history-changing revolutionaries, great Presidents, doughty fighters, inspiring writers, learned teachers, intrepid explorers, daring frontiersmen, and of course buccaneering businessmen, media moguls, and capitalists throughout American history. The Scots' unflappable spirit and hardy disposition helped them take root among the earliest settlements and become some of the British colonies' foremost traders. During the Revolution, the teachings of the great Scottish philosophers and economists would help to shape the democracy that thrived in America as in no other part of the world.
I Go to America: Swedish American women and the life of Mina Anderson by
"Mina ...writes about how grateful she was to be in America, where the pay was better, class differences were unconfining, and children--girls included--had the chance for a good education. In her own words, 'I have never regretted that I left Sweden. I have had it better here.' Lintelman expands upon Mina's memoir, offering readers a window into the lives of the nearly 250,000 young, single Swedish women who immigrated to America from 1881 to 1920."
Becoming Old Stock: The Paradox of German-American Identity by
"More Americans trace their ancestry to Germany than to any other country. Arguably, German Americans form America's largest ethnic group. Yet they have a remarkably low profile today, reflecting a dramatic, twentieth-century retreat from German-American identity. In this age of multiculturalism, why have German Americans gone into ethnic eclipse--and where have they ended up? Becoming Old Stock represents the first in-depth exploration of that question."
Masterless Men: Poor Whites and Slavery in the Antebellum South by
"Analyzing land policy, labor, and legal history, Keri Leigh Merritt reveals what happens to excess workers when a capitalist system is predicated on slave labor. With the rising global demand for cotton--and thus, slaves--in the 1840s and 1850s, the need for white laborers in the American South was drastically reduced, creating a large underclass who were unemployed or underemployed [and suffered]... tangible socio-economic consequences as a result of living in a slave society."
White Trash: The 400-year Untold History of Class in America by
Nancy Isenberg upends assumptions about America's supposedly class-free society and shows how poor whites have been deeply ingrained in the country's history for the past 400 years. They were central to the both the Civil War itself and the rise of the Republican Party.... A fascinating work that's timely to today's public debate about rich and poor.
Strangers in Their Own Land by
Renowned sociologist Arlie Hochschild embarks on a thought-provoking journey from her liberal hometown of Berkeley, California, deep into Louisiana bayou country - a stronghold of the conservative right. As she gets to know people who strongly oppose many of the ideas she famously champions, Hochschild nevertheless finds common ground and quickly warms to the people she meets, people whose concerns are actually ones that all Americans share: the desire for community, the embrace of family, and hopes for their children.
Ellis Island Nation: Immigration Policy and American Identity in the Twentieth Century by
"We are told that the United States is a 'nation of immigrants,' built by people who came from many lands to make an even better nation. But this belief was relatively new in the 20th century, with immigrant quotas that endured until the Immigrant and Nationality Act of 1965. What changed over the course of the century is the rise of 'contributionism'--the belief that the newcomers from eastern and southern Europe contributed important cultural and economic benefits to American society."
March is Irish American Heritage Month and Greek-American Heritage Month.
October is National Italian American Heritage Month, and German American Heritage Month. [Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection Diversity and Inclusion page. Scroll down to the chart.]
The Italian Americans by
Four videos in the collection. Running time: (218 min.
Brand Irish by 
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Reading Room. Date Created/Published: [between ca. 1907 and 1921]
Ethnic Groups of the Americas: An Encyclopedia by
Intended to help students explore ethnic identity--one of the most important issues of the 21st century--this concise, one-stop reference presents rigorously researched content on the national groups and ethnicities of North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. See "Americans of European descent."
Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America by
This work provides essays on specific minority and ethnic groups in the U.S., with an emphasis on culture (religions, holidays, customs, language), historical background, and settlement patterns. Ethnoreligious groups such as Jews, Chaldeans, and Amish are included. Each essay has a listing of organizations and research centers, names, addresses, and contact information for periodicals, media, and suggestions for further reading.
Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups by
A classic, this book covers "Acadians to Zoroastrians-Asians, American Indians, East Indians, West Indians, Europeans, Latin Americans, Afro-Americans, and Mexican Americans--[and] provides the first comprehensive and systematic review of the many peoples of this country."
The Polish American Encyclopedia by
At least nine million Americans trace their roots to Poland, and Polish Americans have contributed greatly to American history and society. Between 1870 and 1920, more Poles came to the United States than any other national group except Italians. Additional large-scale Polish migration occurred in the wake of World War II and during the period of Solidarity's rise to prominence. This encyclopedia features three types of entries: thematic essays, topical entries, and biographical profiles.
We the People: An Atlas of America's Ethnic Diversity by
This atlas summarizes and illustrates immigrants' entry and migration within the United States over the 19th and 20th Centuries. Genealogy research is greatly enriched for researchers seeking the locations and movements of immigrated Americans of various ethnic and national origins. Each subgroup is presented with supporting facts, maps, demographics, and concise historical context.
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