Andy Lai 1/24/12 HIS 146 ESSAY 1 The history of Cuba was first documented with the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492 which was then colonized by the Spaniards during the 16th century. Since its colonization, Spanish Cuba’s economy had remained stagnant for centuries. The island’s economy comprised of pastoral pursuits and agriculture; the island of Cuba primarily served as a stopping point for the Spanish fleet in transit between Spain and the New World. A series of events that transpired during the 19th century had awakened Cuba’s economy dramatically. What was once just a mere stopping point for the Spanish fleet had now become the major sugar producer in the world during this time.
Immigrants in the Gilded Age When it comes to the Gilded Age of the United States of America, there are many things that stand out during that time. One of these things was the division of labor and class, primarily between the natural born citizens and the thousands of immigrants that came to the United States during that time. The natural born citizens were used to certain rights granted to them in the beginning of the era, such as getting a good wage in the many factories that had spread across the country and being more secure in their job. The immigrants that came over, however, were willing to do the same jobs the Americans were doing only at a lower wage since they usually came to the States with little more then a suitcase and the clothes on their backs. This drove most, if not outright all, factory owners and employers to lower the wages for everybody and thus unsettle the citizens who had the job in the first place.
Due to the different ethnicities, many immigrants found the transition to American life quite difficult, despite their efforts to ease the transition by assimilation into U.S. society. (Schultz, 2014) The repaid expansion of American cities caused the appearance of tenements, something never before seen. The tenements were narrow four to five-story buildings with few windows, limited plumbing and electricity. (Schultz, 2014) The tenements nurtured disease, high infant mortality, and horrendous issues with pollution, and were often the site of racial and ethnic
Somewhere in the 19th century, there was an incredible rise of immigration rates. Immigrants were coming to America in big numbers, and they needed jobs and housing. The overflow of immigrants caused a new problem for them, for many of them were jobless and had poor housing. In the middle of the 19th century, immigrants were coming to America left and right. It quickly became a predicament where there were more people than places to live in.
In America today, the issue of immigration is a cause for debate. Families that decide to flee their typically poverty-stricken countries in search of the ‘American Dream’ of opportunity, are forced to pick up unwanted and exhausting jobs that pay next to nothing, often way below minimum wage. Although this human exploitation seems unethical, the illegality of immigrant workers leaves them with no choice but to take whatever it is they get. Consequently, employers acquire a hard worker for next-to-nothing wages, which is clear reasoning for the sheer amount of immigrant workers in America. Recognized as taking the “dirty jobs”, the many skilled labour workers are fundamental to the smooth running of the country and ironically, without them, America’s rich economy would crumble.
(Name) (Course Instructor) (Course Title) (Date of Submission) Immigrant as Employees The United States of America has had a perennial problem concerning illegal immigrants working in the country. Indeed, the problem does not appear to end soon since every single day there are immigrants getting into the country illegally and proceeding to get employment. As a developed nation, the country’s phenomenon growth has ensured existent of many employers who require labor. In effect, the need for a workforce has necessitated an influx of illegal immigrants seeking employment and a better life in the country. The estimated figures of these illegal immigrants are around 22 million of them.
Before the Industrial Revolution goods were sacred, jobs were low, and there was not much produce, and while during the industrial revolution up until present day everything has changed. There is now a mass production of numerous produces and jobs had started to increase in all areas. The revolution was an era of change, independence on production, and the rise of many different industrial leaders, while some were considered robber barons and others were considered captains of industry. With robber barons those people are considered powerful business men who used criminal and unethical ways of becoming wealthy and or powerful. While with captains of industry they are considered businessmen who tried to help contribute to the community with jobs, the market, and productivity of certain buildings.
They’ve already went through the dangerous and hard part of getting into the Country, why not take the extra step? When asked this question immigration analyst Daniel Costa says “even with legal citizenship would an American honestly be willing to give an immigrant a chance at a new life, most would say no”. (Costa) Really the biggest problem most people see with immigrants is the whole job and population situation. But really this is not that big a deal to most people who do not want low paying jobs with bad health benefits and hard labor because that’s the typical job these immigrants are taking, and in all reality only a few Americans are willing to take. (Costa) Most Americans point out the bad and disadvantages that immigration brings, but immigration does bring benefits.
Many people work hard for years to become a citizen and some don’t even become a citizen. They also take jobs away from United States citizens because they work for less. The average American working man is the one who is taking the biggest hit for illegal immigration. In tough economic times, we cannot afford to pay for non-citizens let alone are citizens. The United States of America pays _______
This isn’t a topic that many would think as a potential vulnerable population, yet they are faced with many barriers on a daily basis. Illegal Mexican immigrants fit perfectly in what the meaning of what vulnerability is. They are susceptible of being in situation that can cause them harm physically, emotionally, and financially (The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, n.d.). This is the risk they take while being in this country in order to provide a better life for their family in their home nation. In 2009, the number of undocumented immigrants living in this country was 11.1 million, and the majority of them (around 60%) were Mexicans (Cabrera & Arenaza, 2012).