Why were they treated so badly?

Question

Okay, the issue with Mexican immigration we say we don't hate mexicans we hate illegals because they are criminals. Well, with the comparison to the irish and the germans, they say "They came legally". Well if they came legally, then what was the problem? They we're looked down upon and treated horribly by Americans. So then wasn't it racism? Could it be racism now with the guise of the issue being the legality of their presence here? What do you think.

The Irish had been coming to America for years, but in the 1840's the potato famine crushed their homeland. During that decade, a fourth of the population died of disease and hunger, and many fled to the U.S. (Bailey 325). Here, they lived at the bottom of the social scale, working as menial laborers and domestic servants, and living in squalid conditions. The native population looked down on them, considering them less clean and hygienic (Daniels 131).

Furthermore, the Irish, like today's Hispanics, were accused of stealing American jobs. This fear and resentment led to the famous sign often posted in store windows: "No Irish need apply." The sign was so common that it was frequently abbreviated simply to "NINA" (Bailey 325).

At the same time, Germans were pouring into the U.S., fleeing political instability at home. While most Irish stayed in east coast cities, the Germans were more likely to move to the mid-west. They were slightly better off than the Irish, but suffered discrimination nonetheless, as the Nebraska anecdote illustrates. Hostility towards the Germans had been around since they began to immigrate en masse in the eighteenth century. Benjamin Franklin, in his 1751 pamphlet Observations Concerning the Increase of Mankind, wrote

"Why should the Palatine Boors [Germans] be suffered to swarm into our Settlements, and by herding together establish their Language and Manners to the Exclusion of ours? Why should Pennsylvania, founded by the English, become a Colony of Aliens, who will shortly be so numerous as to Germanize us instead of our Anglifying them, and will never adopt our Languages or Customs, any more than they can acquire our Complexion." (Daniels 109-10)

Okay Regina, I realize you never read what I put. I guess you missed the part where Benjamin Franklin criticized the Germans for NOT assimilating, which means they weren't learning to speak the language. People then were just as paranoid that they weren't learning the language. Next time please read what I put before you start complaining.

I think it's hard for american's to see the two parallel because of the fact that they are in the middle of it. But, for other countries that look at this it is one in the same. Sorry no of course it wasn't racism, you got me there. It was this country's tradition of xenophobia. Foreiners are not going to take over. The mexican's whos familys have been here the longest do speak english and lead normal american lives. Usually within the first generation they speak english. I speak from experience as each generation comes they lose more and more of their culture. My family has been in the United States since the Mexican American War. And yes all of my family speak English, they still eat mexican food but thats where it really ends. I think that it's unfortunate. I feel like I really lost out on a beautiful culture. Thank goodness I rediscovered it with my husbands family. That is why I am so quick to defend them because I know their stories, I know their struggles.

Answer 1

The answer is simple: History repeats itself.

Fear is people's #1 enemy. As humans, we tend to do horrible things out of fear. Racism is one of the worst forms of fear.

Fear is a political strategy:

I woke up on Sept. 12, 2001, and found out that there are 12 million illegal people in the country. I thought to myself "holly shiet, that's a lot of illegal people crossing the border in one night". My point: It didn't get that way overnight. Our government has been looking the other way FOR YEARS, but then on 9/11, John Smith shiet his pants and is suddenly afraid of his own shadow. Politicians (specially the Republican Party) have used this fear in their favor. Illegal immigrants have become the new tool that they can use to get people to vote for them.

Answer 2

In 1840 the Telegraph had just been invented. The Industrial Revolution was yet to begin. The Irish Gaelic language had been in decline since the 1840's. Many Irish came to USA and actually understood much English. They were desperate, poverty stricken, and not of the best pedigrees.

HOWEVER---and this is a HUGE HOWEVER---
The Irish immigrants didn't just want to BE in America,
THEY BECAME AMERICANS!

They got educated, they got skills, they assimilated into our culture and loved this country. They didn't demand American Citizens feed, clothe and house them. They paid their own way and earned every bit of respect they now have.

Ask yourself--Did Americans have to speak Gaelic?

But that's not all folks...
Potato Famine Irish no longer come here in bus loads, truck loads, boat loads!
There is virtually NO END IN SIGHT for the flow of Illegal Mexicans. They will continue longer after each of us, now living is dead --because corrupt Mexico doesn't care about it's own people! Come on, we're talking 20 million Illegals in a short number of years abandoning Mexico and Hating USA.

Answer 3

We did bad things in the past. However, that doesn't mean whenever there are people breaking the law, people being against that are doing a bad thing. Yes, one thing immigration law protects is the jobs, wages, schools, services and culture of the domestic peoples from changing too quickly. Being against that is one reason why there are immigration laws to limit immigration of those who we pay to subsidize. After the Great Wave came the most restrictive immigration laws we ever had. THAT is when upwards mobility, the middle class and the American Dream developed.

Answer 4

Ok Mamacita, I've noticed you like to cut and paste a lot of the same info. to make you appear to be well educated on the subject of immigration when in reality you are far from it. If you were you would be aware of how very different the past immigrants of Germany and Ireland were from todays Mexican Immigrants.

Here is a list of some differences:
1.) They came here and learned the language.
2.) They never came here demanding what they thought was owed to them, they actually were thankful just to be allowed into the country and worked hard for what they got.
3.) They never would have burned the U.S. flag or flew their nation of origin's flag higher than the U.S.'s flag.
4.) THEY WERE PROUD TO BE AMERICANS!!!!

**Mamacita, I see you only commented on #1 on my list.
Guess you can't say anything about the rest of it cause you know it's all the truth and as we all know the truth hurts.
And you know what else, I'm all for you embracing your "beautiful" culture, as a matter of fact why don't you celebrate the culture in your ancestors homeland and run for the border!

Answer 5

Once upon a time the US had more room and needed workers now we have at lot of Americans that cant get decent jobs.unfortunately Mexicans have failed to manage to curb their own birth rates and have produced more people then their economy can support.Now they want to come here and do the same thing plus have the American people foot the bill.Go to youtube and watch immigration gumball and this person can explain it better then I can.Its a must see for anyone concerned about this issue

Answer 6

Different times, different issues. Then people were protesting too much legal immigration. Now it's too much illegal immigration. And it would not be an acceptable solution to permit more legal immigration now. We already accept plenty of legal immigrants. We need limits on the number of people coming here. You have with your points made it clear that this issue is not about racism. It's about having more people coming here at one time than can be accommodated without lowering the average citizen's quality of life. It only makes it worse that they come here illegally, refuse to assimilate and demand the same rights as citizens (or even more rights than citizens).

Answer 7

When ANYONE comes, even legally ...they are here cuz they got it tough.
When it's tough, you may be dirty, you may lack social graces, you may not understand English or the culture and the consequence is, you may act like a clod.

That's the whatfor on "discrimination". I discriminate against flies on my food ...and I discriminate on what spices I use on my food. We want what we want by custom and peasure and we expect that around and about us in our homes/lives in our natural country. It's what makes home, home.
Respect that if you can ...and if you can't ( or don't know enough to be able to) you will be discriminted against.

Add the fact that you come here illegally, don't care to adhere to our culture, want to rape , rob and pillage possibly and then seek to either turn your hospitable country into your own home in the process ...and yes, you are going to get some real serious discrimination by those that you seek with intention to overthrow.

Some would call it a war.

Answer 8

You are trying to compare apples and oranges.
The Irish and German immigrants you referred to came here LEGALLY.
I am against people of ANY country coming to the US ILLEGALLY. I have no problem with Mexicans or the people of any other country who come here legally.
The vast majority of illegals here happen to be from Mexico, wanting them to leave is not a racist belief, it's a belief in the rule of law. If 13,000,00 Italians were here I'd want them gone too.

Answer 9

The information you keep posting has no comparison to the illegal Mexicans we have today. They stand apart from every other group that has come so far. They refuse to follow laws, don't learn the language and do not plan to become Americans. They send millions of dollars back to Mexico and contribute very little, except to line the pockets of the traitors that hire them

Answer 10

You are so confused.

It is called Nationalism not racism.

The Germans and Irish were White. They were bashed because of their legal status and threat to the labor market, not because they were white. Fortunately we were able to accommodate them because of the Industrial Revolution.

The German Settlers came to the mid-west and used empty land to begin growing food for a growing nation.

We do not have an industrial revolution for the illegals now, nor do we have empty land for them. They are here attempting to take over our country.

Mexicans are Hispanic.

No one is bashing Hispanics except a few racist idiots.

We are bashing Mexicans.

No Racism, just Nationalistic Patriotic fervor.

American of German, Irish, and American Indian decent.


EDIT: to the two thumbs down, Did you miss the American Indian part?

Quit sticking up for illegal invading criminals and get out of my country.