Part 1:
Are there any aspects of American life that are uniquely "American?" Are there practices, traditions, holidays, foods, music, sports, etc. that cannot be traced to a different country of origin? What does this tell us about the composition of American culture?
Part 2:
View the film: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/triangle/
Think & Respond: One page typed
Triangle Shirtwaist
Factory
THE IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE
Dreams versus Realities
According to the film, what countries of origin were represented among New York City's 100,000 garment workers?
What brought these immigrants to America, and what motivated them to work such long hours?
How did the realities of their working lives contrast with their dreams and their observations of
Promise and opportunity in America?
What does this story say about America-both as a nation marked by glaring inequities and injustices, but also as a place defined by remarkable opportunities and transformations?
Part 3:
Critical Thinking Discussion Question:
Do you think Americans of Italian, Jewish, and Eastern European descents are more closely identified with their ancestors' countries of origin and with their ancestors' cultural practices than Americans of Western European decent? Why or why not? Provide examples.
Part 4:
Critical Thinking Discussion Question:
Why have Chinese enclaves like China Towns continued to have such a strong presence in American cities to the present day? What historical factors might have had an effect on the rate of Chinese-American assimilation?
Part 5:
What is the relationship between fear and Nativism?
Think about how fear, prejudice, and discrimination influenced developments related to immigration and internal migration in the United States?
Part 6:
Critical Thinking Discussion Question:
Why is Mexican-American immigration a more complex issue than European or Asian immigration? How does the history of relations between Mexico and the United States make this a complicated discussion? Hint: How much of the United States used to be a part of Mexico?
Part 7:
Click on this link and watch this video about U.S.-born children who are left behind when their illegal parents are deported.
https://highered.nbclearn.com/portal/site/HigherEd /browse?cuecard=44413
Respond:
Is this a fair policy?
Why or Why not?
What possible solutions can there be to address this problem?
Part 8:
1. Should America provide a safe refuge for immigrants in danger in their home countries (refugees)? Why or why not?
2. Should Puerto Rico become the 51st U.S. state? Why or why not?
3. Why has there been a difference in the reception of the first and second waves of immigrants from Cuba?