Shut The Door Dbq

Immigrants were put through many challenges when they first came to America, like discrimination, Americanization, and being blind to how America worked.

As previously stated, immigrants who immigrated to America in the Gilded Age/ Progressive Era faced many difficulties adjusting to the foreign land. Immigrants faced such discrimination just for not being purebred Americans. Nativists were Americans who were against immigration. Nativists tended to discriminate against immigrants and deemed them unworthy of living in the promised lands (America). A quote from “Shut the Door”, a speech by Senator Ellison DuRant Smith, will be used to further prove the point that immigrants obtain unnecessary backlash for simply existing. The speech was given in 1924 in hopes of proving that restricting immigration completely could preserve American resources. “We all know that one of the most prolific causes of war is the desire for increased land ownership

This is good because immigrants are learning English, which could be extremely helpful when looking for a job. Americanization also helped immigrants become accustomed to American beliefs and views. Americanization also included immigrants getting an American education, which is crucial for a stable income source. Quoting from Document 6 will be used to provide a further explanation of Americanization. "It is twofold: (I) to protect the immigrants against fraud and exploitation so that such traditions as they cherish with regard to America will not be lost in their first contact with us; (2) to give them an opportunity to learn the English language and to secure such a working knowledge of our laws and institutions as will enable them to join with us in the work of making the United States a really effective democracy." This quote gives a deeper explanation of Americanization and demonstrates another thing immigrants went through when they first came to