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66th out of 101 books
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Ethnic America: A History
This classic work by the distinguished economist traces the history of nine American ethnic groupsthe Irish, Germans, Jews, Italians, Chinese, African-Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Mexicans.
Paperback, 368 pages
Published
March 21st 1983
by Basic Books
(first published January 1st 1975)
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Each immigrant group has changed in America, and American society has changed in many ways. The most dramatic example is that today there are people sitting in Congress and on the Supreme Court whose ancestors were brought here as slaves. Among the world's leading scientific, political, and economic figures today are Americans whose immigrant ancestors were once dismissed as 'the beaten men of beaten races.' Nothing has so vindicated the untapped potential of ordinary people as the American expe...more
Thomas Sowell is well known for his insightful and thought provoking articles and books. He was never the one to shy away from a difficult subject, and that is certainly the case with as polarizing topic as race and ethnicity. In American political discourse, race and ethnicity are given either too much attention or not enough, and the motivations for the attention given are oftentimes misguided. Between the polar extremes of nativists and cultural relativists, there is a considerable room for e...more
Sowell does a good job of describing the immigration patterns into America and tying the immigrants' attitudes and ethics with the countries they came from, the reasons they came, and how their relative numbers influenced their lives here and how they were accepted (or not) by other groups already in America. From a genealogic point of view alone it was fascinating but I also learned a great deal about why certain ethic groups had more or less trouble become Americans (if that was even what they...more
A detailed sociological analysis of a variety of European, African, Asian, and American immigrant peoples to the United States. Sowell groups largely by nationality (e.g. Italians, Japanese, Mexicans) but makes notable exceptions for Jews, and for Africans and West Indians, which I found odd as he is himself of African descent. While the capsule summaries are insightful from a historical perspective, Sowell gets dangerously close to classifying by stereotype, perhaps unintentionally reinforcin...more
I borrowed this book from the library when I was 16 and my parents were taking us on a family cruise.
I am so glad I read it when I did. It's a very frank sociological text of America's current (yet fading) 3rd rail, ethnicity. I had no idea the author was Black or a leading conservative pundit. I didn't even know anyone of the particular ethnicities that were referred to with frequency (I met my first Italian-American in college).
This weird, wonderful tapestry of our coun...more
I am so glad I read it when I did. It's a very frank sociological text of America's current (yet fading) 3rd rail, ethnicity. I had no idea the author was Black or a leading conservative pundit. I didn't even know anyone of the particular ethnicities that were referred to with frequency (I met my first Italian-American in college).
This weird, wonderful tapestry of our coun...more
"[This] should be required [listening] for anyone interested in policy questions involving race and ethnicity." - New Republic
Listen to Ethnic America on your smartphone.
Listen to Ethnic America on your smartphone.
Great book, if only it has an updated version! View from 40 years ago... The last few chapters are especially insightful and could apply to other minority groups, such as women. Gave it four stars before finishing I but now think it should be a five.
This is another 5 star book from Thomas Sowell.
Sowell writes about ethnic groups in America. He dedicates a chapter to the Irish, Germans, Jews Italians Chinese, Japanese, Blacks, Puerto-ricans, and Mexicans. He illuminates how differences in behavior are best explained by the cultures and values of these ethnic groups. The immediate environment which included hardships and discrimination seems to have little influence on the behavior of these groups.
Sowell's writing does not ...more
Sowell writes about ethnic groups in America. He dedicates a chapter to the Irish, Germans, Jews Italians Chinese, Japanese, Blacks, Puerto-ricans, and Mexicans. He illuminates how differences in behavior are best explained by the cultures and values of these ethnic groups. The immediate environment which included hardships and discrimination seems to have little influence on the behavior of these groups.
Sowell's writing does not ...more
A really good survey of the different immigrant groups that came to the United States, and the impact each group had on the economics and culture of the nation.
Everyone should read this book. It is certain that I do not agree with everything Mr. Sowell writes, but he makes some very good point.
This has to be one on Mr. Thomas Sowell’s best works. His arguments are well written and factually supported.
One of the best books I have read.
One of the most, if not most, level-headed books in cultural studies I have ever read. Documentation is profuse and his analysis is almost disturbingly objective. This is an admirable overview of nine major American ethnic groups. However, cultural studies is by its nature a slippery subject, one that favours the general over the individual, and so it makes me wary, even when expounded as intelligently as in this book. Cultural studies often becomes cultural determinism, thus leaving little room...more
Byron Harrison
added it
g
I found it to be a little dry and some of the info seemed outdated (1972 Census), but overall it was interesting to learn about the settlement and employment patterns of immigrants as the came to the US.
A really fascinating read. I learned some neat things about my own ethnic group as well as the many others that make up America.
Kinda boring really, but good info.
The United States government classifies its citizens and noncitizen residents as American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White; and also as Hispanic or Latino, or not. This is a Borgesian taxonomy that has nothing to do with the historic experience of various ethnic groups in the United States, their cultures, skills and lifestyles; its sheer bizarreness is reminiscent of the Soviet Union's assignment of "nationality...more
Steve
marked it as to-read
Brian Albrecht
marked it as to-read
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Thomas Sowell is an American economist, social commentator, and author of dozens of books. He often writes from an economically laissez-faire perspective. He is currently a senior fellow of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. In 1990, he won the Francis Boyer Award, presented by the American Enterprise Institute. In 2002 he was awarded the National Humanities Medal for prolific scholars...more
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