IRISH IMMIGRATION TO THE USA BACKGROUND READING SUPPLEMENT TO THE FILM "FAR AND AWAY"

FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS

Cropped image "Statue of Liberty" by Rick Zern is in the Public Domain, CC0

ANTHONY SILVA

KAPI‘OLANI COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Unless otherwise noted, this work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preface 4

Tenant Farmers in Ireland 5

Reasons for Immigration 6

Culture Shock 7

The Irish in America 8

Waves of Immigration 9

Oklahoma Land Runs 10

Sources 11

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PREFACE

This text was designed for intermediate-level English language learners (multilinguals) as a background information supplement to the film Far and Away. In was first used in Intermediate English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL 92) at Kapi‘olani Community College in spring 2016.

Anthony SilvaMay 4, 2016

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TENANT FARMERS IN IRELAND

In Ireland in the 19th Century, tenant farming was very common. Tenant farming is an

agricultural production system. In this system, landowners contribute their land and tenant

farmers contribute their labor. (A tenant farmer is someone who resides on land owned by a

landlord.) Tenants paid rent to their landlords in cash, labor, or product. They also had to pay

taxes to the Church and the State. Tenant rights over the land varied. In some cases, the

landlord could evict the tenant at any time. In other cases, the landowner and tenant signed a

contract for a specific number of years. Until about 1900, landlords owned the majority of land

in Ireland. In fact, landlords owned 97% of the land in Ireland in 1870. The majority of the

people had no access to land. Many tenant farmers had very few rights. The abuse of tenant

farmers led to widespread immigration to the United States.

Cropped image "Eviction" is in the Public Domain

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REASONS FOR IMMIGRATION

Individuals, families, and other groups of people immigrate to other countries for

various reasons. Experts generally categorize these reasons into two main groups: push factors

and pull factors. Push factors are aspects of the old country that push people away from that

country. They are unfavorable aspects of that country. Some push factors include lack of jobs,

famine, persecution, lack of freedom, and war. Pull factors, on the other hand, are aspects of

the new country that pull people towards that country. They are favorable aspects of that

country. Some pull factors include job opportunities, education, security, and better living

conditions. Most people probably immigrate for multiple reasons, or for a combination of push

and pull factors. Some people, however, have no choice in the matter. They immigrate because

other people, such as their parents, make the decision for them.

Push factors Pull factors

Not enough jobs Few opportunities Famine or drought Political fear or persecution Slavery or forced labor Poor medical care Loss of wealth Natural disasters Death threats Pollution Poor housing Discrimination Poor chances of marrying War

Job and other life opportunities Better living conditions Political or religious freedom Enjoyment Education Better medical care Attractive climates Security Family links Industry Better chances of marrying

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CULTURE SHOCK

Many people around the world visit or move to new countries. In the new country,

some of these people experience culture shock. Culture shock is a personal feeling of confusion.

This confusion comes from experiencing an unfamiliar way of life in a new country. Culture

shock consists of four distinct phases. In the first stage, the honeymoon stage, people find the

sights, sounds, food, and inhabitants of the new country interesting or exciting. In the next

phase, the rejection phase, differences between the old and new cultures become noticeable.

These differences may create anxiety. In this stage, people may experience hardships, such as

language barriers, safety issues, and food quality. The earlier feelings of excitement may

become unpleasant feelings of frustration and anger. In the third phase, the adjustment phase,

people grow accustomed to the new culture. They also develop routines. They become familiar

with most situations in the new culture. They also develop problem-solving skills for dealing

with the culture. The culture begins to make sense to them. In the final stage, the acceptance

phase, people are able to participate comfortably in the new culture. They overcome many of

their previous hardships. They become bicultural. Not everyone experiences culture shock. Not

everyone goes through every phase of culture shock, either. But many people in new countries

probably experience some of these feelings.

"P culture" by Palosirkka is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

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THE IRISH IN AMERICA

In the middle half of the nineteenth century, approximately half of the population of

Ireland immigrated to the United States. The majority of immigrants immigrated because of

civil unrest, severe unemployment, or extreme hardships at home. The Irish immigrants were

poor, so they could not travel to other parts of the country. Instead, they settled in the cities

where they landed. In 1850, approximately 80 percent of Irish immigrants lived in cities in the

Northeast US. They created Irish-American neighborhoods, social clubs, and political

organizations. Because vast numbers of Irish immigrated to America, hostility towards them

was common. One reason for the opposition was religious. The Northeast US was mainly

Protestant, but the Irish immigrants were Catholic. Another reason for the opposition was

economic. Immigrants threatened and sometimes replaced Americans in low-paying jobs

because the immigrants were willing to work for almost nothing in order to survive. Signs that

read NINA — "No Irish Need Apply" — appeared throughout the country. Ethnic and anti-

Catholic rioting occurred in many northern US cities. Over time, however, the Irish in America

began to occupy important government and industry positions. Today, Ireland has just half the

population that it had in the early 1840s. There are now more Irish Americans than there are

Irish nationals.

"Irish immigrants in Kansas City, Missouri" by Jeanne Boleyn is in the Public Domain

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WAVES OF IMMIGRATION

Since the founding of the United States of America in 1776, immigration to the US has

occurred in waves. The first wave occurred from the late 1700's to the early 1800's, and the

second wave occurred from the early to the mid 1800's. In these two waves, immigrants mostly

came from English-speaking and other Northern European countries, such as England, Ireland,

France, and Germany. The third wave, from the mid-1800's to the early 1900's, included a large

number of immigrants from countries in Southern and Eastern Europe, such as Spain, Italy,

Poland, and Russia, as well as a smaller number from Asian countries such as China, Korea, and

Japan. As a response to the large increase in immigration, the US government passed the

Immigration Act of 1924. This new law limited the number of immigrants that could enter the

US. It put quotas on the number of immigrants from each country. The law created a lull in

immigration. In 1965, the US government passed the Immigration and Nationality Act, which

relaxed immigration restrictions. The fourth wave of immigration began shortly after this law

was passed, and continues today. The largest number of immigrants today comes from Asian

and Latin American countries.

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OKLAHOMA LAND RUNS

In the late 19th Century, the US government decided to open government land in the

Oklahoma Territory to settlers. One of the ways that the government distributed the land was

via land runs. In a land run, people line up and then race to the plot of land that they want. The

first one to arrive at a plot of land can claim it. The government conducted many land runs in

the late 1800s. The Land Run of 1893 was the largest land run in US history. More than 100,000

settlers traveled to northwest Oklahoma on foot, by horse, by wagon, and by train for the land

run. This land run opened approximately 6 million acres of land. It began at noon on September

16, 1893. Some people, however, entered the land area early. They hid near the best plots of

land, and then claimed their land shortly after the start of the land run. These settlers obtained

their land illegally. Nevertheless, many of these sooners were never discovered and kept

possession of the land that they claimed.

"States and territories of the United States of America" by Golbez is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

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SOURCES

Cover page

Image "Statue of Liberty" by Rick Zern made available under a Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication; view a copy of this dedication at http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/. Retrieved May 1, 2016 from https://pixabay.com/en/statue-of-liberty-new-york-monument-271430/

Tenant Farmers in Ireland

Text adapted from "Tenant Farmer" made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; view a copy of this license at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Retrieved January 20, 2016 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenant_farmer

Image "Eviction" is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or less; retrieved January 20, 2016 from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/ File:Family_evicted_by_their_landlord_during_the_Irish_Land_War_c1879.jpg

Reasons for Immigration

Text adapted from "Human Migration" made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; view a copy of this license at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Retrieved February 2, 2016 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_migration

Culture Shock

Text adapted from "Culture Shock" made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; view a copy of this license at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Retrieved January 10, 2014 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_shock

Image "P culture" by Palosirkka licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license; view a copy of this license at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. Retrieved January 15, 2016 from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:P_culture.svg

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The Irish in America

Text adapted from "Irish and German Immigration" made available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License; view a copy of this license at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. Retrieved February 20, 2016 from http://www.ushistory.org/us/25f.asp

Image "Irish immigrants in Kansas City, Missouri" by Jeanne Boleyn is in the public domain; retrieved February 20, 2016 from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Irish_immigrants_1909.jpg

Waves of Immigration

Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Data source: Yearbook of Immigration Statistics, retrieved May 1, 2016 from http://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/immigration-statistics/yearbook/2013/LPR/table2.xls

Oklahoma Land Runs

Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Image "States and Territories of the United States of America July 3, 1890 to July 10, 1890" by Golbez is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/. File retrieved March 10, 2016 from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:United_States_1890-07-03-1890-07-10.png

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