Irish Immigration Essay

The Irish people left Ireland and immigrated to America to enjoy a better life, get away from the poverty and starvation that they were faced with in Ireland due to the potato famine. They face all kinds of discrimination and were forced to take the worst types of jobs, but they never gave up and kept fighting for their freedom. The Irish were brave, courageous, and hardworking and made it possible for all Irish to live happy and free lives in America.

     Irish-American. To some, this term merely designates one of the many ethnic groups which can be found in the United States; but to those who are Irish-American, it represents a people who faced a disaster of mammoth proportions and who managed to survive at great cost. The Great Hunger of 1845 changed, or more often, destroyed the lives of millions of Irish, causing them to seek refuge from poverty and starvation in other, more prosperous countries. However, not all countries would accept these victims of the Potato Famine. After an immense burst of Irish immigration to Great Britain, the British Parliament began to

The Irish experience in the U.S. was harsh. They fled Ireland due to the Potato Famine, and arrived here for opportunity, and even more importantly, a better life. They were also exceedingly poor, so that being

While America was known at the time as a place for accepting immigrants, this was not the case for most Irish immigrants. Irish Catholics were targeted on the grounds that Catholics could not be trusted to remain loyal to anyone but the Pope, if another war were to arise. However, the Irish remained strong willed and assimilated into American society by working as farmers and building machines.

The book, “The Irish Way” by James R. Barrett is a masterpiece written to describe the life of Irish immigrants who went to start new lives in America after conditions at home became un-accommodative. Widespread insecurity, callous English colonizers and the ghost of great famine still lingering on and on in their lives, made this ethnic group be convinced that home was longer a home anymore. They descended in United States of America in large numbers. James R. Barrett in his book notes that these people were the first group of immigrants to settle in America. According to him, there were a number of several ethnic groups that have arrived in America. It was, however, the mass exodus of Irish people during and after the great

The United States saw an influx of Irish immigrants due to the Great Famine (potatoes) in Ireland.

During the 18th century the Irish slowly began their migration to America. Centuries of oppression from Protestant English rule had forced them to live very poor lives under strict rules, in some cases having to renounce their Catholic beliefs and having to abandon their Gaelic

When many think of the times of immigration, they tend to recall the Irish Immigration and with it comes the potato famine of the 1840s' however, they forget that immigrants from the Emerald Isle also poured into America during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The assimilation and immigration of the Irish has been difficult for each group that has passed through the gates of Ellis Island or South Boston. Like every group that came to America, the Irish were looked down upon; yet, in the face of discrimination,

The Scotch-Irish was hardworking and thrifty. They weren’t affected too much by race, language and religion. (Everyculture) There are several notable names that were of the Scotch-Irish descent including Andrew Carnegie, Daniel Boone and many more. A lot of the immigrants worked as farmers, in steel mills and coal mines, along the railroads and still others sought higher education. Poverty also has affected the Scotch-Irish when factories closed their doors. Health issues were based on the where the jobs were such as coal mining which led to Black Lung and other pulmonary

The American Civil War was one of the bloodiest conflicts in the history of the nation. Thousands upon thousands died on the field of battle protecting the Union from destruction. Despite the fact that the Civil War is such an important part of American history, few people have clear understanding of all the contributing parties. People from all across the world fought, in one way or another, in the great conflict, though their names might be forgotten. Immigrants from Europe, Asia, and Africa, all spilled their blood for their new homeland. The Irish were one such people. Though they are often overlooked throughout American history, Irish immigrants greatly influenced the American Civil War, contributing before

After the Civil War, with the economy in shambles and increased openings for jobs, attitudes toward the Irish shifted slightly. Unlike earlier times, when the Irish first came to America, store windows no longer flashed "Irish Need Not Apply" signs. The Irish had won their place amongst the natives, having heartily participated in the war: thirty nine Union Regiments contained a majority of Irishmen, and the famous 69th regiment "Fighting 69" was comprised almost totally of Irishmen. But, don't let the Confederates be forgotten either, over forty thousand Irishmen fought for the grays. The Irish Americans gained some respectability for their involvement in the Civil War and were now more accepted by American society. The Irish Americans in post-Civil War era were more economically successful. Several of the Irishmen that had been manual laborers now held managerial positions in the railroad, iron and construction industries, their hard work has allowed them to rise through the ranks. Irish Americans also became educated and trained professionals. Fortunately Irish women, although held back by the restrictions placed on all American women around the turn of the century, achieved higher positions in society as teachers, nurses and secretaries.

So the Irish tended to be in favor of slavery and against abolition. This was just another reason why many of the people around them did not get along with them, this in turn probably making their lives harder and less enjoyable. However, at the outbreak of the Civil War an estimated 170,000 men born in Ireland joined the Union Army, but only about 40,000 were in the Confederate Army. This occurred because the issue for the Irish was not so much slavery as it was preserving the Union. The church in Boston agreed with Archbishop Hughes that ?It is one country and shall be one?.

This set the stage for future confrontations that would be drawn on religious lines. The population of the native Irish was largely Catholic and the English and Scottish plantation settlers were largely Protestant.

Over time the Irish and Germans were finally accepted and considered part of the “American society”. By the time the next big wave of immigration occurred, the Irish and Germans were considered the old guard as opposed to the newcomers. The changing ethnic composition was critical and the Irish as well as the

All my life, my mother and father has told me how hard it has been to support our families in Vietnam. The economy from here to there is so horrible that we have to support them. We're always sending at least about a million in Vietnamese money which is equal to about a hundred in American money due to the currency between America and Vietnam. Because of these two reasons, I am in favor of having better immigration process for people who come outside the US.