Hello Seminar 2 students!
The peopling of NY can be understood as a history of the people who came to the city and how they made a place for themselves physically, economically, socially, and politically. With the rise of New York City as a global economic power in the 19th century the city became a destination for immigrants coming to America. The choices about how to adapt are not made in a vacuum. With each wave of new comers their stories reflect both the possibilities of the times and the constraints that that shaped the options before them. In some cases, such as the Dutch and English, they were able to secure a place in New York society. For the Irish, the path was more fraught but the politics of Tammany Hall played a large role. Many working people found a place in the labor movement. The Jews used education as a vehicle for social mobility. The Chinese initially found themselves excluded from citizenship and later a growing force in the city; both a response to political change. Over the course of this semester we will consider how politics, economics, and social beliefs shaped the experience of those who came. Inversely, we will consider how the people who came shaped the city.
To understand this dynamic between the people of New York and the city in which they find themselves we will engage in an oral history project. Through a set of structured interviews you will construct individual narratives reflective of the larger theme. The details will be explained as the semester unfolds.
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