Coming to New York
From The Peopling of New York City
Coming to New York
Foner, Chapter 1 (Ellis Island to JFK) Orleck, “Soviet Jews” (New Immigrants) Osofsky, Chapter 2 (Harlem)
New York City is a melting pot of worldwide ethnicities. But was it always? When immigrants first migrated into New York, they flocked into groups. Nostalgia made immigrants more prone to familiarity rather than assimilation. Foner, Orleck and Osofsky illuminate this tendency along with background history of various nations, the reasons of migration, the living conditions of immigrants and the effect of their migration upon New York City inhabitants. During the mid-eighteenth century, a great number of people emigrated to the United States of America. Foner, in her publication From Ellis Island to JFK, begins her novel by criticizing the words of Emma Lazarus, whose poem is engraved on the base of the Statue of Liberty. Lazarus describes immigrants as, “…poor…huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” (Foner, 9). Foner argues this statement, claiming that many newcomers have also come, “from the ranks of their home country’s professional and middle classes.” She then devotes the rest of Chapter 1 to describing which ethnic groups emigrated at what age in history, the statistical data of the amounts that emigrated, the reason as to why each group came to the United States, the form of transportation they used to come, and the status of their education, intertwined with the similarities and differences between past and modern immigration.
According to Foner, just before 1900, an overwhelming amount of Jews and Italians swarmed New York City. These numbers were followed by many Latin Americans, Asians and Caribbean people (especially Dominicans). In 1990 the top three groups of New York City consisted of Dominicans, Chinese, and Jamaicans, although the city’s black population is now “increasingly West Indian.” While most Italians came from poor farming families, not everyone was poor or uneducated. Many Jews worked in skilled professions as well as Indians, Filipinos, and Taiwanese, who came with college degrees. People came for various reasons. Italians emigrated mainly because of the overcrowded cities and economic hardships of Italy. Jews came because of political and religious persecution, and anti-Semitic violence. In addition to success stories heard around the world, new technology (airplanes, boats, trains) and letters, in particular, promoted and facilitated emigration to the United States.
In Orleck’s chapter “Soviet Jews” Orleck goes on to describe the tremendous impact that Soviet Jewish immigrants have had on New York City. Settling in mostly Brooklyn and Queens, the Soviet Jews, “have left a lasting imprint on the city’s financial and design worlds,” (Orleck, 111) as commercial artists and computer wizards. This second wave of immigration brought tension between the first wave of Yiddish speaking, religious Jews and the Stalin influenced Russian Jews, who were separated with language barriers. For many years, Jews who even asked for a Visa from the Soviet Union lost their jobs and faced prosecution. In fear of protests and trouble makers, the Soviet government eventually let the Jews flee to Israel. Soviet Jews then changed their destination to the United States. A couple of reasons for their migration were to reunite with their families, to flee anti-Semitism, and to escape the aftermath of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear reactor explosion. Others may have left because of “housing and food shortages and by spiraling inflation,” (Orleck, 117). Close to a half a million Soviet immigrants live in the New York area. Most find comfort in Jewish neighborhoods while organizations such as NYANA assisted them with assimilation by offering counselors to each working-age adults and giving English as a Second Language courses. Being a young Soviet immigrant really paid off in the United States. Their age, specifically, facilitated their attempts to learn English and assimilate into the work force. Many old immigrants, who were in fact skilled professionals, were denied jobs and forced to do manual labor. This pattern was often called the “intellectual holocaust” (Orleck, 120). Finding work was especially difficult for women. This was a shame, considering that 60% of Soviet Jewish women have earned college degrees and professional success.
Coming to a foreign country can often result in nostalgia. Brighten beach became a “…Mecca for Russian and Ukrainian immigrants” (Orleck, 123). It was a place of comfort, that was culturally Jewish, “but not overwhelmingly religious.” This was rare considering the issue of Jewish Identity. Due to different rule, previous generation of Jews spoke, learned, and prayed differently than the newer generations. This was a cause of tension between the Jews themselves.
Soviet immigrants impacted the economy with their stores and restaurants. Unlike previous generations, stores were “clean, bright, and modern” (Orleck, 128). Within their Russian restaurants and nightclubs, their group identity was once again reinforced. Russians are also known for their over-elaborate taste and interior designs. Orleck states, “…restaurants were among the only places where Jews could gather in a relaxed atmosphere” (129). Today, these restaurants are more open to outsiders and are increasingly showing signs of Americanization.
Organized Crime was also a big factor in the mass migration of Soviet Jews. Mobsters such as Evsei Agron and Marat Balagula embezzled millions. Unfortunately, this reflected badly upon Soviet Jews, who can now be stereotyped as thieves. Also, central Asian Jews have settled in Forest Hills on 108th Street, which is nicknamed “Bukharan Broadway.” There they have established “restaurants, barbershops, food stores, and synagogues…” (Orleck, 133). Deeply, religious, the Bukharan Jews hold tensions with Russian and Ukrainian Jews who often proclaim the Bukharans were not real Russians. They too, like the Soviet Jew, struggled between old vs. new traditions.
Aside from Eastern European immigration to New York City, Harlem, in particular, was inhibited by a mass population of Negroes. During the First World War, The Great Migration (as it was called) was greatly overlooked. The majority of Negroes were southern born. In fact, only one fourth of the Negro population were born in New York State in 1910. Between 1890 and 1900, the number of immigrants who left the south more than doubled. Although many were “young, unskilled and unmarried,” (Osofsky, 20) there were many that were educated and suppressed, living in he south. The north offered them an opportunity to express and practice their knowledge. Unlike elderly educated Eastern European Jews, who found great difficulty finding professional careers, some Negroes, such as William Lewis Bulkey, found an opportunity to become successful professionals. Though most Negroes did take upon blue-collar jobs, their hope was higher than those from Eastern Europe. Since Negroes came from no freedom whatsoever as appose to Eastern European Jews, who were educated and had rights, they were more likely to appreciate any rights they were given and more likely to have higher hopes than the Soviet Jews, who viewed their inability to obtain a job as an “intellectual holocaust.”
Negroes migrated for various reasons, some for pure curiosity, others to flee social discrimination. Although blacks were free in the south, the south passed various laws which hindered the economic or social improvements of Negroes. Many sought to escape racial violence, “…in search of a better and more fulfilling life” (Osofsky, 23). During this time, the Industrial Revolution created economic opportunities, which lured rural people, of both white and black descent. This may have created problems between the two races. The competition for jobs was on the rise and this meant that working wages were lowered and many were out of jobs, adding to the already established poverty of New York City.
Osofsky proposes the question. “Why… had Negroes not moved in similar numbers in response to industrialization in the 1870’s-the period of great social upheaval and dislocation that followed the destruction of slavery?” he asks. She answers and claims that the Negroes who moved were the first descendants of former slaves, who “no longer felt any strong attachment to the soil” (Osofsky, 24). Osofsky then goes on to highlight various differences between the old and new generations. He mentions that the old generation obtains habits of diligence, order and faithfulness, while the new generation is “restless, dissatisfied, and worthless” (Osofsky, 25). While Darwinism was used to bash the intelligence of Negroes, Osofsky illuminates the paradox that proposes that the southern economy was greatly dependent upon them.
Migration up the Atlantic was easy, common, and frequent and people came for business transactions or summers for education. Like other ethnicities that migrated to New York City, Negroes as well formed ethnic communities and added a touch of ‘southern flavor’ to make the north feel more at home. This was a common pattern seen in mass migrations, also pointed out by Foner and Orleck.
As you see, Foner, Orleck, and Osofsky all point out similar characteristics of various migrations. Similarities can be viewed through their nostalgic communities, their reasoning, their methods of transportation and their experience of difficulties as new immigrants.