The Ethnic Dimension in American History

by James Stuart Olson

The Ethnic Dimension in American History is a thorough survey of the role that ethnicity has played in shaping the history of the United States. Considering ethnicity in terms of race, language, religion and national origin, this important text examines its effects on social relations, public policy and economic development.A thorough survey of the role that ethnicity has played in shaping the history of the United States, including the effects of ethnicity on social relations, public policy and economic developmentIncludes histories of a wide range of ethnic groups including African Americans, Native Americans, Jews, Chinese, Europeans, Japanese, Muslims, Koreans, and LatinosExamines the interaction of ethnic groups with one another and the dynamic processes of acculturation, modernization, and assimilation; as well as the history of immigrationRevised and updated material in the fourth edition reflects current thinking and recent history, bringing the story up to the present and including the impact of 9/11

Genres: History

372 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Sydney Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short and fast overview of immigration history in the US. A lot of gross simplifications lacking direct and factual validation (e.g. "pioneer wives struggled with the hardship of migrating west") which may offend readers looking for a piece more social-justice oriented. However, my guess is this is the result of trying to fit 600 years of history into 250 pages.

Lots of references to historical policies on ethnicity and immigration that I didn't know about prior--so the book was at least informative in that sense. I also think it did a good job at providing a broad insight into many of the ethnic groups represented in our country (e.g. Various tribal groups from Central America or ethnic minorities from Eastern Europe)
many of which I had no previous knowledge of.

This is essentially a text book though so the language is quiet dry but if you are looking for a very broad overview of immigration history I guess you would benefit from this reading.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crash course into Ethnic history in the United States spanning from colonial era to 2010.
I don't want to say it's very thorough, but it does give a good basis of understanding of nativism through history, treatment of various ethnic groups and eventual group solidarity.

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty good history book but very glad I am done reading it. :D