History of Immigration to the United States

Catalog description

The United States is a land populated by migrants. Most residents of the U.S. today trace their ancestry to Latin America, Europe, Asia or Africa. The U.S. has been both the largest receiving destination of immigrants in the last two hundred years and the inventor of modern border restrictions. This course surveys patterns of migration and immigrant experience from colonial times to the present. Students will consider migration to the United States as part of the evolving global labor market and colonial expansion in the modern world. Students will learn about the relationship of immigration to nation-building, national expansion, war, and the production and reproduction of national identity. Students will also learn about the history of the legal regulation of immigration, the political debates surrounding the role of immigration in society and the experience of immigrants in settling and negotiating life in a new society. Students will explore immigration history by exploring a rich array of primary source material: fiction, memoirs, government documents, oral history interviews, films, maps and more.