Enhanced Standards Of Living As A Major Consequence Of Immigration Of Italians To The U.S
Introduction
Italians have been immigrating to the United States ever since 1880 but the greatest surge of immigration happened between 1880-1914 when four million Italians were recorded as having moved into the US. About eighty percent of these were from Italy and Sicily regions which were characterized by extreme poverty even after the Italian unification. A larger population of Italian immigrants was men from the southern regions who had been severely affected by the push factors of unavailable economic opportunities in Italy. After migrating to the United States they settled in specific neighborhoods which they dominated and these were later called the “little Italies”. These neighborhoods were exemplified with interactions among the Italians due to presence of familiar dishes as well as presence of familiar cultural values. Most of the immigrants had little or no cash on arrival as well as possessing low education levels. Such were used to practicing peasant farming hence they lacked the skills to engage in formal employment. Thus, their major areas of interest were in food, where they engaged in fruit peddling, gardening and running Italian restaurants which catered for the Italian tastes. The search for better economic environment has led to Italians migrating to the United States so as to earn higher incomes as well as explore business opportunities which are not available in their home country. This has led to development of higher and better standards of living for the Italian immigrants
Discussion
Poor economic situation as a major cause of Italian immigration to the United States
The poor economic opportunities in Italy led to their movement in search of greener pastures such that most of them ended up in the United States where they had sufficient hope of establishing source of income. Immigrant’s encountered communication problems as the language they were speaking was not the official Italian thus they had problems understanding each other in their new home. This was especially difficult as very few could interact with those from other regions of Sicily or Italy. Consequently, very few could write or read in either English or Italian as most had barely attended school. However, with the introduction of chain migration several people from certain regions migrated together to towns inhabited by previous immigrants such that they faced minimal problems when establishing their prospects. This social network also provided a better chance for the new arrivals to find jobs and adjust to life the American way. Most of the immigrants were very optimistic about earning enough money so that they could return home and settle there.
The Native Americans referred to immigrants as “Economic refugees who are in search of greener conditions from the worlds largest economy” (LeMay and Robert, 1999).Between 1900 and World War 1, more Italians left for the United States due to the many job opportunities which were presented by the war and the aftermath. The increased number of immigrants to the US led to increased remittances back home in Italy and this made those who had been left behind to follow suit thus the surge in 1914. This was further boosted by the fact that relatives and friends who had migrate earlier were wiling to send money to cater for the tickets of those who were wiling to move. Similarly, the prospects of meeting relatives and friends in a strange country who would host and help them settle were quite an inviting deal. Consequently, none of those who had left Italy earlier on was unemployed in America hence those who had similar dreams were convinced that the same opportunities would open up for them once they landed in the States (Juliani, 1971).Italy had developed a system of taxation which caused lack of enterprise especially in the agricultural sector. Unpredictable increase in taxes was the order of the day and most land owners were skeptical about improving their land for fear of the tobacco tax as well as the family tax.
With these duties being paid to the state, the land owner would gain very minimal benefits from his land and the bets option was thus moving out of the country and into the United States of America where the amount of tax being to the government was not as big. With the reduced activity in agriculture, the government had to look for ways of obtaining revenue to fund its projects in addition to running the country. This led to intense bleeding of the masses and when the situation became unbearable, Italians opted to migrate to the other side which appeared brighter. Promises of higher wages in American cities was quite a lucrative deal with most of the Italians opting to work in cities rather than on farms where the wages were lower but the standards of living a bit cheaper. Most Italians could save quite substantial amounts of money so that after some time they would go back to invest the same in Italy. This way they did not need to build permanent homes in their adopted home so that in due time they would go back home (Juliani, 1971). Ideally one would expect the Italians to adapt the American way of life so that they could fit in but this was not the case as the immigrants stuck together and tried to preserve the Italian culture in every possible way. This is particularly exhibited in the way they established their own neighborhoods which were composed of Italian shops among other businesses and it was a custom that all Italian bought items from other Italians only.
Money that was in possession of the Italians was kept within the community and this made them prosper. According to the pioneer immigrants there was no need of buying an item from an American if a fellow Italian could sell it to you and probably with a fairer price. This way the Italians worked closely together such that those who were focused were able to amass large amounts of wealth. The Italians valued their culture so much that with time the Americans started appreciating the same and today; Italian dishes are part of each American’s diet (LeMay, 1999).Although the Italians have benefited tremendously from the American economy, the have not contributed as much to the American government. The silk industry has grown rapidly due to their expertise in that area as well as the fruit and grape industry in California. This has given them a chance to exploit their agricultural skills as their motherland never presented such opportunities. Alternatively, ready market for Italian dishes such as macaroni has boosted business opportunities and experts in the area were airlifted by their relatives to migrate to the States where the sales from macaroni were better than in Italy. This gave way to the opening more potential businesses for the skilled as well as unskilled Italians (Juliani, 1999).
Conclusion
The poor economic situation that drove Italians out of their country was the same reason that made them go back to Italy to rebuild their country. Consequently, they were able to achieve their dreams of financial freedom as well as improving their living standards together with those of their fellow countrymen. Thus, among the many problems that contributed to the immigration, search for better economic terms and environments tends to culminate all.
Works cited
LeMay, Michael C, and Robert, Barkan E., US immigration and naturalization laws and issues. Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc. 1999
Jerre, Mangione, La Storia: Five Centuries of the Italian American Experience. Harper Perennial Publishers. 1993
Juliani, Richard N., The social organization of immigration: the Italians in Philadelphia. The Pennsylvania State University Press. 1971
Juliani, Richard N., Building Little Italy: Philadelphia’s Italians before mass migration.. The Pennsylvania State University Press. 1999.
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