Coming To America Chapter 7 From the Mediterranean: Italians, Greeks, Arabs and Armenians

I thought it was interesting to think about the impact steam-powered transportation had on immigration – it was no longer just people overcrowded in the cities – people who were remote and working in the smallest villages and towns or farms could realize the dream of a better life, too.

Italian immigration is of great interest to me because my grandfather immigrated to New York from Italy in the 1940s. My grandmother’s parents immigrated to Boston in the early 1900s and she was born in Boston in 1910. Her father dies when she was 10 and she and her two older sisters and mother returned to Italy where she lived for about 10 years before returning to live permanently in New York. My grandparents stories were fascinating and I grew up with a deep sense of appreciation for the contributions immigrants make to our country as well as the unique opportunities offered to them by coming to America. I would love to share my grandfather’s story in detail – it is quite amazing, but too long for this blog. But a short story – he had a positive experience with the padrone system. My grandfather came here with money he had saved, but his greatest challenge was not knowing the language. He was well-educated and culture, but neither spoke nor read English. So, it was hard to get work. But he was befriended by a padrone – it was just as the text said, an immigrant himself who had been here long enough to learn the language and start a tile business. My grandfather met him at breakfast one day where all the local Italians went in New York. He went to work for Aldo laying tile – in the subways of New York and the pool at Yale! Eventually he taught himself English, saved his money and became a successful businessman in San Francisco. That’s the very short version – but he loved being in America and all the opportunities it offered.

            I appreciated the way the Greeks, Italians, and Chinese established businesses that served the low-income public – and yet showed a common thread of entrepreneurship in choosing businesses that did not require lots of cash but were labor intensive – in other words, it was up to the individual to make a go of it. I think then, America was a place where with enough hard work and determination, a person could make a life, and a good one. I think with today’s economy, it is harder to achieve that now.

            I appreciated reading about the Arab and Armenian immigrants – it is important to hear the truth of their stories. There is a great deal of misinformation about these immigrants and it contributes to bias in the way they are perceived and treated by people in our country today.