"An accessible and frank primer on immigration in the United States. [A] much-needed exploration of the truths behind U.S. immigration history." -- STARRED REVIEW, School Library Journal
Introducing a new nonfiction series that uncovers hidden histories of the United States.
The true story of a nation of immigrants and its dreamers.
The United States has long been touted as a place where anyone with a little grit and determination could come to pursue the American Dream. But as more walls are erected and borders are closed, is that dream still alive today? Complete with an 8-page color photo insert, A New History of Immigration introduces young readers to alternative histories of immigration beyond Ellis Island and amplifies the voices of marginalized immigrants and their stories of success.
I've read a few books in this series now and they're informative explorations about history in a new context-- the stuff "you aren't yet reading in textbooks". In this one about immigration, Backhaus explores immigration from the early immigrants through 2022 with policies related to the United States Mexican border but also understanding the diaspora of Caribbean identities that have settled in the United States.
It asks the reader questions at the end of the chapter and provides enough context for a middle grade reader to have an understanding of the topic (which also includes vocabulary and text features to further explain concepts).
In college, I spent a lot of time in my ESL Teacher Education program learning about immigration history, and unfortunately a lot of it did not stay in my memory. This book was a fantastic way to remember stuff I'd already learned, while introducing me to aspects of immigration history that I hadn't heard before.
It's a very easy and quick read for an adult (I'm 31) and it's packed with useful context for discussions about immigration policy today. Some of the big takeaways you'll find in this book are that we've continually made immigration more difficult in the United States, and a lot of immigration history is filled with racist and xenophobic policy. The same patterns repeat themselves throughout history, and you'll find a lot of what you see today reflected in our history.
This should be required reading for participating in immigration reform discussions because all too often, we get lost in the context of our own time, forgetting the mistakes of the past. There's a lot of misinformation about immigration floating around today that's easily debunked by looking at US immigration history.