After visiting the tenement museum last week with class, I was excited to speak to my grandmother about her experience, if any, with the tenements. My grandmother, second generation American, barely speaks of her past, and little is known about her childhood.
Usually my grandmother takes a good deal of prodding, and after a few words on the subject, she changes it to something more current.
This past Sunday was different though. During a biweekly visit to my grandmother’s assisted living facility, I briefly mentioned the tenement museum, and as soon as I did, she seized the opportunity to tell me about her experience with the tenements, and about her father’s story.
Her grandparents, and my great-great-grandparents, came from Eastern Europe between the 1870s and 1880s. They were the first of their family to come to the States. My great-great grandfather worked in a factory, and every nickel went to his family back home. My great-great grandfather even bought them tickets, but his parents refused to come.
They refused to speak Yiddish with their children, even though that was what was being spoken all around them. But even when my great-great grandparents could afford to move out of the tenements, they decided to stay. My grandmother speculated that they did not want to leave all of their friends and memories behind.
My grandmother frequently visited her grandparents on Cherry Street (or so she says– she is 97), and was shocked to learn about the living conditions of the tenements later on, given the fact that her grandparents lived only two in one tenement when she visited.
I loved the tenement museum: I really got a sense of what life was like for the Eastern European Jews during the early 1900s, as well as my own family. The community that I learned about was my great-great grandparents’ community, one that my great-great grandparents refused to leave.
This poster, which is now displayed at the entrance of the tenement building, reminds us that the Lower East Side was largely populated by German immigrants in the mid 1800’s.
This photograph not only shows the overcrowded life-style of Immigrants living in the Lower East Side but also the clash of styles.
Hello, My name is Ilizar Yusupov, as indicated by the tittle of this post. I was born in Uzbekistan in the city of Samarkand on June 13, 1995. My family is Jewish. Both of my parents are from Samaraknd as well, I think. I don’t know much for sure about the history of my family because its rarely brought up except for once in a while when I bring it up. Most of the information I know is from my mom, who was born there then immigrated to the U.S.A. when she was 19 in September of 1995. She was the second in the family to leave, the first being her older sister who came here in 1993 – although this was only in our immediate family, as there were many relatives that came over as well, I can think of 2 other families of 5 or more off the top of my head. After my mother, her parents and older brother came. my moms older sister and brother are both doctors, and my mom is a director at a hospital of the nursing informatics department. We all speak English, except for my grandparents – who understand a lot but are still definitely not comfortable with the language. They both speak 4 or 5 other languages, though I don’t know which exactly. Me, my mom, my aunt, and my uncle speak Russian with my grandparents; my grandparents speak other languages with their friends from the neighborhood typically.
I was born in Samarkand but I immigrated to Rego Park very early and there I stayed for the rest of my life so far. Originally my aunt and her husband came here with their new daughter in 1993 (my moms older sister) and they lived in a small apartment. Then my mom, myself, my uncle (my moms brother) and my grandparents came here in 95-96 and lived in a studio apartment until I was 4. During this time my mom and her sister divorced their husbands – an option that was not available to them in their country (I think, but again I am hazy on this issue so I don’t want all of these details to be set in stone, but as far as I know they are accurate. I have done some questioning but I feel best not to ask too much at once.) My mom found another husband, who was born here in America. His family is of German, Austrian, French and Russian descent – but his family immigrated here 3 generations ago in the early 1900’s and settled in the Bronx. My step-father’s (technically called so – though I refer to him very endearingly by his first name) father, or my grandfather – was a building manager and handled the finances and allocation of resources of buildings and he was also a kind man and would help immigrant families move into some of the apartments for lower prices, such as my family. Eventually my dad and mom met and got together and had a daughter together, my little sister – though that is another story all on its own.
I lived with my grandparents until I was 7 years old. My mom moved in with her new husband and his studio apartment when I was 4, but she would see me often, in between 24 hours shifts at the hospital and school. (not all the shifts were 24 hours, of course, but there were 24 hour shifts, and 16 hour shifts, and the more common 10 or 12 hour shifts as a floor nurse.) She worked in a beauty salon at first, then a bakery, then she got her job as a nurse and worked her way up to her current position, in conjunction with her large technical working experience as a nurse, and a masters in informatics and administration, she has worked her way up to a directorship position.
I attended public school all my life, I went to Stuyvesant high school, and was going to go to Dartmouth college but my family decided it was an obscene amount of money to pay – we couldn’t afford it and it wasn’t worth the loans, I am a firm believer that education is what you put into it anyways. In the 18 years we have lived in the U.S. we went from living in 2 studio apartments (1 housing 4 people and the other housing 5) to a 1 bedroom apartment for my grandparents, a nice attached house for my uncle and his family of 5, a 1 bedroom apartment for my aunt and her family of 2, and a 2 bedroom apartment, as well as a studio for my mom and her family of 4. I guess the point of my story is that I love immigrants. And I’m very excited to get to study them. I don’t know what I plan to major in, it is all very, very interesting.
Hi, I’m Thomas. I’m 18 years old and I’m from the Morris Park section of the Bronx. For my major, I’m currently torn between psychology and political science. In my spare time, I watch movies, play video games, and hang out with friends. An current issue I care deeply about is LGBTQ equality.
I’m have a bit of most Western European countries in me. I’m Italian, German, Irish, Danish, Swedish, Finnish, Portuguese, English, Dutch, and Belgian. My dad’s side of the family is mostly Italian. My great grandmother came here during the early 1900s. Everyone married Italians until my grandfather, who married a woman from Belgium. My mom’s side brings in the diversity. Due to constant emigration, I can trace my ancestry back to several countries.
Hi! My name is Odette Colangeli and I am 18 years old. I plan to major in Communication Science and Disorders and minor in Linguistics so that I can become a Speech-Language Pathologist. I’ve been interested in language for a while and right now am teaching myself Korean and plan to learn French. I dream of studying abroad and even teaching English in a few countries to help familiarize myself with the language, culture, and cuisines of each. “Home body” definitely describes me, and I enjoy spending time at home listening to foreign, mostly Korean pop music; reading manga and teen fantasy novels; watching dramas, Asian variety shows, and horror-thriller movies; and finding healthy—but tasty!—meals to make.
I was born and raised in Queens, NY. My mom was born in Haiti but left when she was four to travel to many countries such as Morocco, France, and Chile until she finally settled in Queens when she was 16—her dad worked with the United Nations so they had to often move to countries in need. Because of this, my mom speaks English, French, and Spanish fluently. My dad on the other hand grew up in Brooklyn and is a 3rd generation American. His dad was born in Queens while his mom was born in Connecticut. Aside from my dad’s paternal grandfather who left Italy after an earthquake destroyed his land, all of my dad’s grandparents left Italy because of poverty, unemployment, and hunger. My dad doesn’t speak any Italian, so I unfortunately did not learn it, and my mom didn’t teach me any of the languages she knows, so English is the only language spoken at home with my two brothers.
Hi, I’m Anna. I am currently a student at Hunter College. I am very much undecided on my major, but recently became interested in learning more about Business, and so I am taking a couple of courses at Baruch College. I hope to find something that I can genuinely be interested in. I spent 18 years on Long Island, NY, but I definitely enjoy the city life over the suburbs. I enjoy learning about fitness and health, swimming, reading, and most of all – eating.
A little bit of family background: Both of my parents are from China. They both immigrated to the United States when they were about 20 years old, just looking to better their lives. They had me and my sister a few years later, and we moved out to Long Island. Although I am not an immigrant, my parents are, and that has had its influences. I speak to them in our FuZhou Chinese dialect at home. They like to stick to the Chinese culture and values, and so at times there is a discord between the ways in which we see things. But I will always appreciate the fact that I have had opportunities in my life that my parents never had.
Hello everyone! My name is Milan Bien-Aime. I am 19 years old and come from the Upper West Side in Manhattan. I am hoping to major in Economics or Business, and I previously went to the Brooklyn Latin High School, where i participated in the International Baccalaureate program. I enjoy drawing, debate, public speaking, politics, and reading, as well as playing video games and watching movies. During the summer, I work as a camp counselor at Bank Street Summer Camp.
Both me and my little brother were born and raised in New York City. My ancestry traces back to the Caribbean, as most of my family originated from there. I have two mothers as parents and was born from an unknown sperm donor of Cuban descent. One of my mothers grew up here in Spanish Harlem, while my other mother is of Puerto Rican descent. Both are lawyers came to New York City to study law at New York University, where they met each other. I hear a lot of Spanish from my relatives, but I am more fluent in French and English than Spanish.
Hello! My name is Christopher Augusto Rincon, and I am a prospective Psychology/English double major here at Hunter College. In my spare time I enjoy watching and reviewing films, practicing Mixed Martial Arts, and playing video games. Fun Facts: I’ve been kicked in the head three times, I have no canine teeth, and I’ve been on four service trips to third world nations (once to Costa Rica, once to the Dominican Republic and twice to Honduras).
My father was born and raised in the Dominican Republic. The son of a musical prodigy, he quickly demonstrated an aptitude for playing the violin. At the tender age of 18, he immigrated to the United States to receive higher education at the University of Georgia, where he was granted a full music scholarship. It was there that he met my mother, an all-American girl from Tennessee who was also pursuing a degree in music performance. Although my mother is predominantly of English descent, her lineage is so profoundly ingrained in American history that it is difficult to identify her as anything other than American. Shortly after my birth, my parents moved to Forest Hills, where we lived for 3 years before relocating to our current place of residence in Long Beach, Long Island.
Hello everyone, my name is Glenn Liu. I am 18 years old, and I come from Fresh Meadows, Queens. Both my parents are immigrants that came to America to study at Queens College. My dad is from Taichung, Taiwan, and my mom is from Taiping, Malaysia. I was born and have lived in New York City my whole life. I went to PS162 and MS158, both in Bayside, and Townsend Harris High School in Flushing. I haven’t decided my major yet, though I am considering Geography, Cultural Anthropology, or Environmental Studies with a minor in Geology, Art or Music.
Some of my hobbies include hiking, sketching, watching the sky, video games, reading fantasy novels, playing the piano, and finding deserted spots with pleasant scenery to haunt. I love traveling to different places to admire architecture and natural formations, as well as to experience different ambiences.
