Ethnic Groups and Discrimination
Charles Varner II
ETH/125
Jan 15, 2012
STEPHANIE PERRY
Ethnic Groups and Discrimination
I have chosen to write on the Irish ethnicity as my ethnic group, due to a vast portion of my family heritage originating from Ireland. My research has determined that the Irish immigrated to the United States during the 1850’s after the great potatoes famine that struck many Irish farms in Ireland that lead to a mass starvation. Many Irish fled Ireland and immigrated to the United States of America with promises and hopes of a better life for their families. This unfortunately was not the case upon arrival for nearly all of the Irish immigrants. Irish immigrants faced multiple forms of discrimination when arriving in the United States of America such as preconceived forms of prejudice and segregation.
Even with life in Ireland being brutal and harsh after the potatoes famine, immigrating to the United States was not a pleasant experience. Many Irish prior to their journey held an unusual tradition known as “the American Wake”. The American Wake was more of a funeral for the living than a celebration. The wake was held in order for children, friends, and relatives of Irish men and women who were leaving to be able to say final goodbyes, to impart wisdom to the immigrant, to obtain tips on how to survive and make a life for themselves. The Irish immigrants were well aware that the journey was risky and becoming established in a new country with little resources would be a difficult task. With the only future left in Ireland being an ever increasing amount of poverty, disease, death, and depression, many Irish had no other choice but to seek a better life elsewhere. (Marshall, n.d.)
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Irish immigration began by the masses of Irish men and women boarding ships making them severely overcrowded, branded “Coffin Ships” because the conditions were unimaginably cramped, filthy, lacking essential supplies, disease outbreaks and many ships were not sea worthy. (The History Place, n.d.) Many of the Irish immigrants who left Ireland for a better life never made it to the United States alive due to these poor travel conditions. But they died seeking a better life and hope that someday their families would not endure such harshness.
Upon the Irish immigrants arrival in the United States they needed to find suitable, yet affordable housing to live and employment in order to support their families. This became one of the many challenges that the Irish immigrants faced. A number of unfortunate Irish immigrants found themselves taken advantage of by the Americans who preyed on the ignorance of the immigrants and compelled the Irish immigrants into favored tenant houses, charging them well above average fees for their “service.” Many Irish immigrants remained too impoverished to escape or move on. (Stolarik, 1988)
The fortunate Irish immigrants that were able to move away from the port cities had trouble finding suitable employment. The Irish immigrants had adapted to the farming life and were having difficulites adapting to the industrialized cities in which they settled. The American culture at the time was focused on the building of railroads, canals, and bridges rather than farming. The Irish immigrants faced institutional discrimination when trying to find employment. Many employers hung signs outside their businesses that stated “No Irish Need Apply” (Jensen).
This was because of the stereotyping Americans had that Irish immigrants were believed to be lazy and unskilled. The stereotyping of Irish immigrants forced them to take hard labor jobs in industries that were dangerous and low paying wages. Numerous Irish immigrants died in job related accidents while building railroads, bridges and canals.
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Irish immigrant’s absolute deprivation and redlining resulted in Irish immigrants to be forced to live in neighborhoods made up of unsuitable shacks and huts. This resulted in segregation and poor living conditions. With these poor living conditions, many faced an early death from sickness and disease.
Irish immigrants were not only discriminated against for being Irish but also for their Roman Catholic religious beliefs but seen as trouble makers for standing up against institutional discrimination. The Chicago Post wrote, “The Irish fill our prisons, our poor houses…Scratch a convict or a pauper, and the chances are that you tickle the skin of an Irish Catholic. Putting them on a boat and sending them home would end crime in this country.” (“Irish Immigration Notes”).
The days of “No Irish Need Apply”, absolute deprivation and redlining have since disappeared, but they have not been forgotten by many Irish Americans. Through the years of poverty and poor living conditions, the Irish have slowly gained acceptance in American society.
I can culturally identify with my ethnic group and with the United States mainstream culture both equally. My family heritage consists of being Irish, German, and Native American, which I have learned from performing research for this essay. I can identify with the struggles my ancestors have faced during immigration to the United States even though most of these issues aren’t present today.
References
Marshall, R. (n.d.).
The American Wake.
The History Place. (n.d.).
Irish Potato Famine: Coffin ships.
Stolarik, M. M. (1988).
Forgotten doors: The other ports of entry to the United States.
Jensen, R. ().
A Myth of Victimization. Retrieved from http://tigger.uic.edu/~rjensen/no-irish.htm
Irish Immigration Notes. ().
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