Different Immigration Blogs

I liked Tiffany's blog (http://www.somethingbytiffany.blogspot.com/) because the diary that was included made her blog very realistic. I did not knew that many Italians left their country because of natural disasters, that was one thing that I learned from her blog. I agree with Tiffany in the point that many immigrants went to the U.S. to follow the "American Dream".
Another blog, in which I certainly agree with, was Paola's blog (http://www.mylifeaspaola.blogspot.com/). Many Americans are immature in still thinking on discrimaination against immigrants. I liked the idea that she had, in which the congress should pass down a new law making bosses have immigrants working in their jobs because it may help them a lot.
Randy's blog (http://www.randyeloko.blogspot.com/) was about the German Immigration. I was surprised to read about how they lived in their villages were burnt, killing many inhabitants. I also agree with Randy because I found it very sad to put as prisioners some immigrants, when they are trying to be free and happy.
I found Jenny's blog (http://www.jennyliam.blogspot.com/) interesting because it explained what the Irish passed through. How lamentable is to read how immigrants livedin their country and the reasons why theyleft it. I also liked the point that Jenny had with her article. I agree with her because it was cruel and unfair to report illegal immigrants who only wants to live the "American Dream".

The Story of My Family!

My ancestors are all from Guamaní and Patillas in Puerto Rico, and throughout the years we have decided to stay here, because this is our home. There have been some changes in the way we live compared to our ancestors. They lived more in the country side and they made money by working in sugar cane plantations and in other farms. Today, we live in the city side because there is more job opportunities and more schools.
Today many Puerto Ricans tend to study out of Puerto Rico, since it turns out to be more successful and faster. My father and sister went to the U.S. to study and passed through many hardships. My father told me that it was not easy to get use to the different environment. He felt a little uncomfortable because when it was time for group works, he realized that he was always left out of the groups. He could not hold it anymore, so he returned to Puerto Rico and continued his life here and married my mother, which was also Puerto Rican, and had to girls.
My sister is seven years older than me and I have learned many things from her. She went to study to New York and she does not regret it because it helped her a lot. I asked her if she was caught in a situation such as the one of my father, but she did not. She said that things were different in the U.S. since there were more immigrants from many places around the world studying. Yes, there were some groups that were still racists but they could not do anything because the majority of the people were immigrants.
My family is very united and help each other out, no matter what the situation is. I know that many people don't like us, Puerto Ricans, but that is the way we are and nobody can change us or our culture.People are equal and should be treated fairly, no matter their color, culture, language or if they are immigrants or not. People move to other places looking for a better life, not to destroy a country.

Is the U.S. still racist with Immigrants?

Why can't they have a normal life in the United States? They are normal people, just like you and I. Many people just like this family cross the border of Mexico everyday, looking for a better life.It makes me sad to know that many of these immigrants are treated unfairly because they simply aren't American citizens. I understand the Americans because it is their country and they want the best for it, but they also have to understand that not all of these immigrants move to the U.S. for drug trafficking or other bad things. The majority of the illegal immigrants are in the U.S. wanting to have the American desire and being able to have a job and be successful in their lives. Having protection in the borders of the U.S. is good because it avoid many conflicts, but it is very aggressive when non-citizen people, looking for better opportunities, try to cross. Immigrants move to other countries to have a better life, not to make it worst.

An Irish Diary!

[My family before we took the Steamboat]

Today is June,1948

It is sad to see how we lived in Ireland, in such bad conditions. We had to share the food that we had, so that it lasted for the rest of the week. My mother did not eat sometimes to give us more portions of food to eat. We lived in a village where we worked all of the days in a farm to obtain at least $2 dollars per each 4 hours. When the potato rot took place in Ireland, there were no farms left so that meant that there wasn't money. Our neighbors died of starvation and that was when my father decided to take us to the United States.
My family took all of our belongings that could be stored in our luggage. Our village was near the sea, so we walked to catch a steamboat, but first our father bought the tickets with the money we obtained from our things that my mother sold. It took a couple of months to arrive to the U.S., we were excited yet sad because we missed our country and friends. We stopped at Ellis Island near New York and we were interrogated and inspected, but we did not have any problems and continued on.
It was hard to find a nice town to live in, since Americans started to be a little harsh to us, I always thought that they didn't liked us. We found a community full of Irish people and we decided to stay there to live. It felt good to be near people of your same culture. My dad tried to look for jobs but he was rejected, since he was an immigrant. He looked for many jobs but he did not found one, but my mother gave him an idea to own a laundry. The laundry turned to be very successful and as the years passed, my family owned a chain of laundries around New York.
It felt so relaxing to have a good life and being able to eat well. I just wished that everyone in Ireland had the same opportunity that we had in the United States. Me and my brothers went to school and had an excellent education, we also met many American friends in school. I lived in New York for many years and worked at a clothing factory. I am so glad that my father decided to move to the U.S., because it helped us to be successful in our lives.
-Anonymous (Irish)

The Immigration of the Irish

September,1820

The dominant industry of Ireland was agriculture on the beginning of the 19th century. The laborers from Ireland were paid about one fifth only of what could be obtained in the Unites States and the ones that did not have land were considering to move to "The New World". There were also many religious prejudice of Protestant Masters to the Catholic Irish and many political subordination, that's why many other Irish had no alternative but to move to the U.S. for some relief.


[These were the steam boats used to transport immigrants from Ireland to the U.S.]

In 1845, the great potato rot made more people to migrate to the U.S. This potato rot that
occurred in Ireland lasted for about five years and the survivors wished only to get away and have a better life. Many Irish migrated to the U.S., taking an affordable trip to Canada, where they could buy cheap tickets to the U.S., or even walk across the border. The starving families that could not afford to pay landlords were other ones that moved looking for a better future. Almost 3.5 million Irish men entered the U.S. between 1820 and 1880.
Moving to the U.S. was difficult yet, many peasants arrived without anything, including resources to start farms or businesses. Many of the Irish that moved to the U.S. worked in building the great canals, which were the national transportation system in that time. Many of the Irish laborers were the ones that did the grueling work. In towns near their works, the Irish formed their small communities. Many Irish became policemen and firemen and even became some of the fist drivers and conductors! The first Irish did not have many job opportunities because they were unskilled, but as the years passed by, they worked as plumbers, boilermakers and more. Some Irish laborers even had the opportunity to become bosses. The Irish became rich in cultural resources and were able to face hardships on their own. The cultural events such as "St. Patrick's Day" helped hold the Irish culture together. Besides the church, which was important to the Irish, the most important things of their culture were the "press" and "stage".
This history of immigration from the Irish makes me understand how desperate people were to have such a good life. Based on all of these facts, it was not easy to move over to the U.S. People, such as the Irish, passed through many hardships for able to be successful. Things in Ireland must have been very bad for the Irish to move to a different country where they have to start all over. According to their history, the Irish became very successful and had a better life than the one they had in Ireland.

The Irish move to the United States!!

[Irish immigrants arriving to the U.S.]