Adjustment of Immigrants in Chicago

A study of the Slavic group between the period from 1900 to 1970 provides seventy years of sociological subject matter from which to learn about the immigrant working class in the U.S. The fact that the immigrants were largely successful in adjusting to life in an industrial nation enables one to formulate some principles of "melting pot" success. To a large extent, the immigrants were instrumental in shaping their own destinies through the political system in an often-times corrupt Chicago. Their use of politics for their own benefit will also provide valuable insights. The question of upward mobility will also be examined, since the ethnic makeup of Back at the Yards has shifted in the past twenty-five years, as new immigrant groups replace those who have moved on.

In his introduction, Slayton (1986) offers a capsule view on why the Slavic immigrants were successful in governing their own lives:

... workers survived and even prospered. They for

. . .
of schooling made little difference; with eight years of grammar school, it was almost as difficult to become a skilled laborer as with six" (p. 56). Sexual inequalities were perpetuated, despite the fact that women had already shown themselves to be more than physically able to maintain both the family and a job outside the home. As Slayton (1986) writes, "Parents believed business courses the proper training for girls; the four-year diploma, considered career training, tended to be a male prerogative" (p. 57). The Polish immigrants read their papers daily. Back of the Yards was a community of people who read. Thus the newspaper empowered the citizenry by keeping them informed. Different ethnic group papers were sold in stores catering to people with something in common. Members of the community who took up self-publishing could almost be guaranteed an audience. The papers were full of personal details about persons, places, and things--a collection of human interest stories for the most part. Slayton (1986) demonstrates the personal involvement of Aaron Hurwitz, editor of Back of the Yards Journal in 1935, who owes the success of the paper to his intimate involvement in its day-to-day operation. Even gaffes and mispri
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
Local Democracy, Neighborhood Council, Holy Father, Yards Journal, Upton Sinclair, slayton 1986, school diploma, References Slayton, Robert Slayton's, Aaron Hurwitz, outside home, collective action, Yards Local, Chicago Press, school diploma meant, slavic immigrants, neighborhood council, job downtown, yards neighborhood, yards neighborhood council, study slavic, community preferred women, community slayton, upward economic ability, community slayton 1986,
Approximate Word count = 1590
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

More Essays on Adjustment of Immigrants in Chicago