The term “immigrant” frequently conjures up images of forlorn and lonely individuals toiling away in a foreign country, being forced to forget about their homeland thousands of miles away and faced with the constant pressure of having to adapt to the cultural norms of their new home while simultaneously facing discrimination and prejudice by the native population. This is, however, an incredibly distorted image of immigrants who are far from isolated from the worlds they left behind. Immigrants are, in fact, not alone but part of a “transnational household with members scattered across borders.”

Transnationalism was very much alive back in the day and is even stronger today. With respect to the immigrants of the last great wave, Italians were the “quintessential transnational New Yorkers of their time.” Due to certain unfavorable conditions in the homeland, many Italians found themselves immigrating to the United States with the monomaniac goal of finding work. Most were not concerned with starting new lives here but with saving up sums of money, which they would then take back to Italy to improve the quality of their own lives and that of their relatives at home. Many Italians saw the Unites States as a “workshop” and felt an inextricable sense of loyalty and responsibility to the people they left behind as these people often included wives, children, and parents. Money was constantly sent to family members in Italy and letters were frequently exchanged. As promised, an impressive number of Italians actually returned to Italy permanently, buying “a little house and a plot of ground” there and living markedly enhanced lives.

Today, a noticeably different kind of transnationalism pervades New York City. It is one that is definitely more far-reaching and intense due to a variety of factors including transformations in the technologies of transportation and communication dual nationality provisions by home governments. In fact, transnationalism is almost “a way of life” for the immigrants of today and is much more accepted and celebrated now than it was in the past. Today’s immigrants can be seen as living two totally separate lives, one in the home country and the other in the host country.  It’s not unusual for immigrants to buy homes in both countries, open up businesses in both countries, and boast political involvement in both countries. Scattered members of the transnational household can easily be brought together through phone calls, emails, and other forms of communication, allowing immigrants to be actively involved in matters back at home. Due to the quicker, more convenient, and relatively inexpensive trips back to the native country, immigrants can easily take part in important life events of those that they have left behind and can bring even bring relatives to join them here. As a result of this far-reaching transnationalism, immigrants are always connected to the familiarities of the home and there is little reason for having to permanently go back, explaining why the rate for return for present day immigrants is significantly less than that of past immigrants like the Italians.