Essay: Immigrant Motivations: Push and Pull Factors

Immigration has shaped the United States as a nation since the first newcomers arrived over 400 years ago. America has been known to be a nation of immigrants. Most immigrants viewed America as the “Land of Opportunity.” Back in the mid-19th century to the early 20th century immigrants mostly from eastern and westerns Europe were leaving their home to find work in order to allow them to live a better life and to practice their religion freely.  Many immigrants came to America seeking greater economic opportunity. America technically kept its promise but the quality of the job that came with it was terrible. They had jobs but the conditions were horrible in slums, mines and factories and the immigrants didn’t make a whole lot of money to take care of their families which made them very poor.
America has been seen by immigrants as the “Promise land”. Many settlers from Europe and Asia came to seek their fortune in a new country which was thought to have unlimited resources. ” Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these the homeless, tempest-toast to me, I Life my lamp beside the golden door!” (Document A). For many years, the United States opened its doors to welcome  those seeking political and religious freedom as well. Immigrants built up the United States from the very beginning. This country was, and continues to be a nation of ethical and cultural groups.
Particularly for immigrants of this period, were the push factors such as European population growth and subsequent overcrowding, scarcity of land, unemployment, and food shortages. Religious persecution forced thousands of Jews from their homelands, especially in countries such as Russia and Poland. In “Document D”  is a cartoon of the  “Ark of Refuge” it shows Uncle Sam on the Ark of Refuge welcoming immigrants to America with open arms. In the background there are clouds in the sky at the right side of the painting, the sky is darker and scary and there was a war where they lived.  The signs in the painting indicate the freedoms to be found, particularly from taxes, kings, and compulsory military service. As you look towards the left side of the painting the skies are more clear and bright.  That is a symbol that America was a better place to live for the immigrants. Most immigrants worked low-paying, unskilled jobs in factories. Some continued farming as they had in their homeland. Still, others worked in physically demanding occupations such mining and railroad construction. “As a class, they [Chinese laborers] are quiet, peaceful, patient, industrious, and economical… Without them, it would be impossible to complete he western portion of the great national enterprise[ transcontinental railroad] within the time required by the Act of Congress”(Document B). Since America gave freedom for a better opportunity including offering jobs. The Chinese laborers were less to deal with compared to white laborers and thy could deal with having less wages. Also, they provided great help with the transcontinental railroad. Once the immigrants came and settled in America, they lived in different parts of the U.S. Those from Europe came through East Coast facilities, while those from Asia entered through West Coast centers. More than 70 percent of all immigrants, however, lived in New York City. They turned to live in the major cities because there were already others residing in those areas.  They found that living in a bigger city became easier for them because they were able to blend in with others that shared their same culture.  Conversely, living in a small town or village, the population would be more exposed to discrimination.
As the U.S became a more industrial nation, the great need for workers attracted many people from Italy, Germany, Ireland, and other Europeans countries.  Their plan was to stay only to make enough money to support their families. “A certain part of this recent immigration is transitory. Italians and Slovaks, for instance, after they have by thrift accumulated a sum which is large for them, return to their native villages and carry back with them new notions and habits which set up a ferment among the simple rustics of a Calabrian or North Hungarian Valley” (Document C). From an immigrants point of view there was plenty of land for them to live, especially outside of the cities but immigrants settled inside the city because that’s where the jobs were located. The jobs that were available were offered however they were forced because Americans needed assistance for these jobs to be done. These jobs unexpectedly were low-paying, dangerous and undesirable. They did receive religious freedom still got exposed to discrimination which lead to stereotypes.
The tolerance, equality, and freedom offered by the U.S. attracted people to America. These pull factors continue to attract immigrants to the U.S. even today.  After they get here, immigrants start contributing to the economy of this country. They wear many hats in American society. They are family members, students, workers, business owners, investors, clergymen, and members of the armed services, to name just a few of their roles. In all their combined roles, immigrants made a vital contribution to the economy. They compose an increasingly essential proportion of the workforce.” An Italian girl who has lessons in cooking at the public school will help her mother to connect the entire family with American food and household habits. That the mother has never baked bread in Italy “only mixed it in her own house and then taken it out to the village oven“ makes all the more valuable her daughter’s understanding of the complicated cooking stove. The same thing is true of the girl who learns to sew in the public school, and more than anything else, perhaps, of the girl who receives the first simple instruction in the care of little children “that skillful care which every tenement-house baby requires if he is to be pulled through his second summer.” (“Document G”) In this passage, this young lady was able to use her skills cooking to take care of her family at a public school. To add, she could use those same cooking skills to make a living for her family or start a business.