hist

Immigration and its impact on the United States

• Lecture questions:
  • 1) How did integration/immigration impact the development of the United States?
  • 2) What stages did the women’s suffrage movement go through?
  • 3) What characterized the populist/progressive movement in the late 1800s and early 1900s?
• Overview of immigration discussion:
  • Positive/beneficial reasons given for immigration (first paragraph of the handout discussion): immigration helped develop the country.
  • Objections to immigration (bottom two sections): concerns about wages, economic competition, and social/cultural changes.
  • The class uses a handout and graphics to explore immigration and its effects.
• Key arguments about immigration’s role in national development
  • Population growth and economic scale:
  • The United States did not have the largest population or landmass early on, but it grew rapidly with immigration.
  • If immigration had been cut off around 1800, population growth by 1930 would have been far smaller than in reality. Estimated sequence discussed:
    • ~5{,}000{,}000 people in 1800 (approximate historical figure) → ~36{,}000{,}000 by 1930 if immigration continued, versus much smaller actual growth.
    • In 1930, the population was around 123{,}000{,}000 (historical approximate; transcript notes “123” due to garble, but commonly cited figure is 123 million).
  • Real implication: immigration contributed to a larger pool of people, a bigger economy, and a stronger position in global affairs.
  • Economic growth and global power in the 20th century:
  • A large population and large economy helped the U.S. outproduce rivals (e.g., in World War II, tanks/planes/ships) and later project influence against the USSR.
  • The idea is framed as a positive link between immigration, population growth, and economic strength.
• Migration pace and historical patterns
  • 1890 onward: about 15{,}000{,}000 immigrants had arrived since 1890 (15% of the population in the 1914 snapshot).
  • 1914 snapshot: immigrant-born population constituted ~15 ext{ percent} of the total population.
  • 19th century immigrants mainly from Ireland and parts of Southern/Eastern Europe; by 1890s, new waves included Italians, Eastern Europeans (Poles, Russians), and Jewish immigrants.
  • 1840s Irish immigration:
  • About 2{,}000{,}000 Irish immigrants in the 1840s (Potato famine era).
  • Population in 1840 ~20{,}000{,}000 (20 million).
  • The 1840s saw tensions such as the “Bible Riots” of 1843 in Philadelphia where anti-immigrant groups attacked Irish neighborhoods and churches; property damage and displacement.
  • Assimilation concerns and evidence:
  • Early fears that immigrants would not assimilate; Henry Cabot Lodge (early 1900s) opposed new immigration on grounds that some groups (Italians, Poles, Russians, Jewish immigrants) did not speak English at home. Lodge argued they would not assimilate, but this view was later shown to be flawed as subsequent generations did assimilate and identify as Americans.
  • Irish assimilation by the early 20th century contrasted with newer immigrant groups who spoke different home languages; Lodge’s critique highlighted the evolving nature of assimilation and language.
  • The argument that assimilation would fail for recent immigrants versus earlier waves, and the counterclaim that assimilation often happens through children/grandchildren who adopt American identities.
  • The role of assimilation and culture in public debate:
  • The transcript discusses concerns about immigrants maintaining distinct identities; the counterpoint emphasizes eventual assimilation across generations.
  • The middle ground in immigration policy:
  • The instructor suggests that extremes on both sides (open borders vs. closed borders) are not necessary; a middle-ground policy with safeguards and sensible immigration levels is presented as most beneficial.
• Economic arguments around wages and labor market effects
  • Common concern: more immigrants could lower wages for native workers.
  • Counterargument presented in the lecture:
  • If more immigrants arrive and are employed, total employment in the economy increases, expanding demand and consumption, which can attract investment and create more jobs.
  • An upward spiral effect: more workers -> higher incomes -> greater consumer demand -> more investment -> more jobs.
  • Illustrative analogy (business owner perspective):
  • In a small town with 10 unemployed workers and 10 available jobs, an influx of 40 additional workers seeking work could allow the employer to offer higher total employment; roughly, more workers means more demand for goods/services, which stimulates new businesses and stores.
  • If immigrants are gainfully employed, immigration contributes to economic growth rather than merely driving down wages.
  • Limits to the argument:
  • While immigration can expand the economy, there is a practical limit if population growth is excessive relative to job creation; the discussion acknowledges the need for moderation and safeguards.
• Real wages and inflation considerations
  • When economists say “real wages,” they adjust for inflation, i.e., what money can buy after price changes. The transcript notes:
  • Real wages “increased by 43%” over a period, meaning workers could buy 43% more stuff with their money, even after accounting for inflation.
  • This supports the view that immigration coincided with rising real purchasing power in the relevant period.
• Historical context and key takeaways
  • Immigration contributed to population growth, labor supply, and potential economic expansion in the U.S. through the 19th and early 20th centuries.
  • Economic arguments for immigration include increased labor supply, higher consumer demand, more investment, and larger overall economic activity.
  • Economic concerns about wages are acknowledged but framed as part of a broader dynamic where immigration can stimulate growth if workers are employed.
• Patterns and data points to remember (quick reference)
  • Immigrants in 1890 onward: about 15{,}000{,}000 total since 1890.
  • By 1914: immigrant-born population ~15 ext{%} of total population.
  • 1840s: 2{,}000{,}000 Irish immigrants; 1840 population ~20{,}000{,}000.
  • 1930 projection vs reality: projection if immigration halted ~36{,}000{,}000; actual population around 123{,}000{,}000 (historical context).
  • 1910s-1920s: ongoing debates, optimism about assimilation, and cautious policy considerations.

The Women’s Suffrage Movement

• Origins and early momentum
  • 1848 Seneca Falls Convention, Seneca Falls, NY: beginning of organized women’s rights movement (first major public gathering).
  • Seneca Falls Declaration of Sentiments: reworking the Declaration of Independence to highlight women's grievances and demands for equal rights, including suffrage.
  • Early generation: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott (among others); later generation: Carrie Chapman Catt.
• Civil War era and strategic shift
  • During the Civil War, suffragists paused some activities to support the Union war effort and abolition of slavery.
  • Susan B. Anthony helped circulate petitions—hundreds of thousands—in support of the Thirteenth Amendment (abolition of slavery).
  • Formation of the American Equal Rights Association (AERA) to advocate for voting rights for both Black men and women, recognizing two groups denied suffrage at the time.
  • The Fifteenth Amendment (1870) granted Black men the right to vote but did not extend suffrage to women; this disappointment spurred further activism.
• 20th-century momentum and methods
  • By the 1910s, suffragists adopted more confrontational tactics compared to earlier, more conventional approaches: public demonstrations, parades, and direct appeals to politicians.
  • 1913 Washington, D.C. parade (day before Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration, March 3, 1913): organized by state, with visible signs and messaging.
  • Signs included: “Mister President, what will you do for women’s suffrage?”
  • Radical messaging included: “Kaiser Wilson” (comparing Wilson to Kaiser Wilhelm) and other provocative statements challenging President Wilson’s stance on suffrage.
  • Tactics and confrontations: suffragists, including Lucy Burns and Alice Paul, were often jailed for protests in front of the White House; a symbol of their determination and the government’s unease with protests.
  • 1917–1920: shift toward constitutional strategy; sustained pressure eventually led to a political commitment by President Wilson to support a constitutional amendment.
• Geographic and political patterns
  • Map showing suffrage passage by state (late 19th/early 20th century): white states indicate when women could vote.
  • Westward trend: many Western states granted women suffrage earlier (e.g., Wyoming in 1869, many Western states by early 1910s).
  • Why the West supported suffrage more than the East:
  • Rural/farm and ranching contexts where women contributed significantly to labor in households and in the field.
  • California (1911) passed women’s suffrage with a state proposition; rural counties tended to vote in favor, while urban counties (San Francisco, Los Angeles) showed higher No votes.
  • The 19th Amendment (1920) secured woman suffrage nationwide; celebrated by suffragists (e.g., Alice Paul) who appeared in celebration imagery.
• Notable people and symbols
  • Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Susan B. Anthony, Carrie Chapman Catt, Alice Paul, Lucy Burns.
  • Visual symbols: suffrage parade imagery, banners, and celebratory photos of the 19th Amendment ratification.
• Context and implications
  • The suffrage movement intersected with broader civil rights and democratic ideals: question of who counts as a citizen, and how universal voting rights should be.
  • The movement illustrates evolving strategies—from reformist, institutional approaches to direct action and civil disobedience.
  • The victory reflected a broader expansion of democratic participation and the redefinition of citizenship in the United States.

Civil Rights Case: Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) and its Legacy

• What happened in Plessy v. Ferguson
  • A test case created by the Citizens Committee (civil rights group) to challenge Louisiana’s Separate Car Act (1890), which required separate train cars for Black and White passengers.
  • Homer Plessy, a person of mixed race who could “look white,” sat in a first-class car and was asked to move to a colored car; he refused and was arrested.
  • The Louisiana state district court convicted Plessy; the case appealed up to the U.S. Supreme Court.
• Supreme Court decision and legal reasoning
  • The Court ruled that Louisiana could regulate railroad passenger cars and that the statute did not violate the Thirteenth Amendment (abolition of slavery) or the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause when facilities were merely separate but deemed to be equal in quality.
  • Doctrine established: separate facilities were constitutional as long as they were "equal" in quality, i.e., the “separate but equal” standard.
  • Justice John Harlan dissented, warning of the terrible consequences, describing the arbitrary separation of citizens on the basis of race as a “badge of servitude” inconsistent with civil freedom and equality before the law.
  • Dissent quote: "the arbitrary separation of citizens on the basis of race is a badge of servitude wholly inconsistent with the civil freedom and the equality before the law established by the constitution."
• Immediate and long-term impact
  • Plessy v. Ferguson provided constitutional backing for racial segregation across the South (e.g., Jim Crow laws) for decades.
  • Helped trigger systematic segregation in public facilities and schools and delayed civil rights progress.
  • The decision remained authoritative until it was overturned by Brown v. Board of Education in the 1950s, which began the rollback of legal segregation.
• The historical lens and learning from the decision
  • The case illustrates how constitutional interpretation can shape public policy and civil rights for generations.
  • It demonstrates how progressive and regressive legal interpretations can become entrenched through Supreme Court rulings.
• Quick takeaways
  • Plessy v. Ferguson endorsed “separate but equal” as constitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment.
  • The ruling legitimized racial segregation for many decades until Brown v. Board of Education (1954) began to dismantle it.
  • The dissent by Justice Harlan highlighted the danger and hypocrisy of the majority’s position and framed a counter-argument for universal rights.

The Populist Party (People’s Party) and their Platform (1892)

• What a party platform means in U.S. politics
  • A party platform is a document produced by a political party outlining its positions and stance on major issues; each presidential election yields a platform. Politicians within the party may not support every item, but there is an expectation that most party members will back most platform items.
• Populist Platform emphasis (1892)
  • A notable plank (highlighted in the handout):
  • The government should enter upon the work of owning and managing all the railroads. In other words, the populists advocated for nationalization of railroads.
• Context: the Pacific Railway Act and subsidies
  • Background: The Pacific Railway Act (mid-1860s) subsidized railroad construction to encourage expansion westward:
  • For every mile of track, the government granted 20 square miles of land.
  • Government loans for each mile ranged from 16{,}000 to 48{,}000 per mile.
  • Impact of subsidies and state-level actions:
  • Railroads aggressively pushed to build networks, and states granted parallel subsidies to promote rail development within their borders.
  • This created a landscape where railroads and railroad construction became deeply intertwined with political power and funding.
• Political economy critique: subsidies, corruption, and policy outcomes
  • As railroads received subsidies and loans, they sought more favorable terms and began bribing state legislatures to win contracts.
  • The populists argued that government subsidies had corrupted the political process and that public ownership of the railroads would reorient incentives toward public interest instead of private profit.
  • The broader point: the “crisis” wasn’t a failure of capitalism per se but a problem arising from government subsidies that distorted competition and fostered corrupt practices.
• Distinction from the Founding Fathers and Progressive era reforms
  • The populist movement is presented as a forerunner to Progressive-era reforms but with its own distinct approach to governance and economic policy.
  • The populists criticized elite control and sought more direct, democratic involvement in economic life (e.g., public ownership of essential infrastructure).
• Key takeaways about the Populist movement
  • Platform item of government ownership of railroads signals a belief in using government as a tool to curb private power and to democratize access to essential services.
  • The movement framed economic issues (railroad pricing, land grants, subsidies) as moral and political concerns about corruption and control of national development.
  • The Populist platform reflects a broader late-19th-century shift toward government intervention in the economy, which would influence later Progressive reforms.

The New South: Two Main Ideas (context from the lecture)

• Before moving deeper into the populist topic, the instructor asks students to recall the two main ideas in the New South discussed earlier (the handout referenced “the motion of slavery” and the postbellum South).
• The two main ideas suggested in the lecture:
  • Idea 1: The South was industrializing and diversifying away from a purely agrarian economy.
  • Idea 2: A second idea is mentioned but not clearly stated in the transcript (the lecturer notes that this is something to look up on the page). Students are reminded to consult the handout to fill this gap.
• Significance in a broader context
  • The New South concept is used to frame economic and social transformation in the post-Civil War era, setting up contrasts with Northern industrialization and with earlier agricultural emphasis.
  • The shift toward industry in the South intersects with labor, migration, and political debates of the period.

Additional historical prompts and connections

• The instructor’s prompts for further study
  • “How did two laws from 1862 help develop the rest?”: A prompt to review two specific 1862 statutes and their long-term effects; exact laws are not detailed in the transcript.
  • The class intends to compare the populist movement with the progressive era, especially regarding views on government and civic power.
• Guidance on interpretation and ethics in history
  • The teacher emphasizes critical reflection on how policy choices shape social outcomes (e.g., immigration, suffrage, civil rights).
  • Ethical and practical implications discussed include the dangers of extremist positions and the value of middle-ground, evidence-based policy.
• Summary of historical significance across topics
  • Immigration: population growth, economic dynamism, and the tension between openness and protectionism.
  • Women’s suffrage: a long, multi-decade struggle culminating in a constitutional amendment; shows the evolution of civil rights and political tactics.
  • Plessy v. Ferguson: landmark Supreme Court ruling that legitimized segregation for decades; instructive about constitutional interpretation and civil rights progress.
  • Populist movement: an expression of late-19th-century discontent with political and economic arrangements, especially around monopolies and infrastructure; a driver of later reforms and debates about the role of government in the economy.

Connections to prior lectures and real-world relevance

• Foundational principles vs Progressive era
  • Contrast between the Founding Fathers’ view of limited government and the Progressive era’s more activist government role; the lecture emphasizes that the late 19th/early 20th-century movements reimagined the relationship between government and citizens.
• Real-world relevance
  • Contemporary debates about immigration, labor markets, and government policy continue to revisit the same tensions: how to balance economic growth with social cohesion and fair opportunities for all.
  • Civil rights jurisprudence continues to evolve, with Plessy v. Ferguson serving as a cautionary historical example about how legal doctrine can enable or constrain rights for generations.

Key terms, people, and dates to remember

• Key terms
  • “Separate but equal” doctrine (Plessy v. Ferguson, 1896)
  • 19th Amendment (women’s suffrage, ratified 1920)
  • American Equal Rights Association (AERA)
  • Pacific Railway Act subsidies (land grants, loans per mile)
  • Populist Party/People’s Party platform (1892)
• Notable people
  • Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Susan B. Anthony, Carrie Chapman Catt, Lucy Burns, Alice Paul
  • Henry Cabot Lodge (early 1900s anti-immigration advocate)
• Key dates
  • 1848: Seneca Falls Convention
  • 1865: Slavery abolished (13th Amendment)
  • 1870: 15th Amendment (Black male suffrage)
  • 1890s: Immigration waves from Italy, Eastern Europe; Irish immigration continues
  • 1892: Populist Party platform adoption
  • 1892: Plessy v. Ferguson decision
  • 1913: Woman suffrage parade in Washington, D.C. (day before Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration in 1913)
  • 1917–1920: Suffrage movement gains momentum leading to 19th Amendment
  • 1920: 19th Amendment ratified
  • 1954: Brown v. Board of Education (overturning “separate but equal”)