The American Kaleidoscope. Lawrence H. Fuchs
1990
305.8′00973—dc20 89–21481
CIP
5 4 3 2
To my immigrant grandparents, Pearl and Philip, Nettie and Norbert, who discovered the United States, and to my grandchildren—Satya, Simon, Jazmin, Megan, Molly, Brian, and Abigail—who I hope will work to make it an ever more humane nation.
From the first appearance of man on earth down to very recent times, the words “stranger,” “enemy,” were quite or almost synonymous … To correct the evils, great and small, which spring from want of sympathy and from positive enmity among strangers, as nations or as individuals, is one of the highest functions of civilization.
—ABRAHAM LINCOLN
Contents
ONE. THE CIVIC CULTURE AND VOLUNTARY PLURALISM / 1
1. “True Americanism”: The Foundations of the Civic Culture / 7
Three Ideas About Immigrants and Membership: Massachusetts, Virginia, and Pennsylvania / 7
Can Immigrants Learn New Republican Principles? / 12
The Pennsylvania Approach Prevails: Equal Rights Regardless of Religion or Nationality / 16
The Ethnic-Americanization of the Germans / 19
Economic Self-Interest and Patriotism / 23
The Civil Religion Sanctifies the Civic Culture / 30
2. “Reinforcements to Republicanism”: Irish Catholic Response to the Civic Culture / 35
Guarding the Civic Culture: What to Do About Catholic Immigration / 37
The Irish Response: Americanization Through Politics / 42
The Civic Culture and the Irish / 49
3. More Slovenian and More American: How the Hyphen Unites / 54
Immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe / 55
Guarding the Gates: A Racial View of American Identity / 56
Efforts to Americanize the Newcomers / 61
Italians and Jews Claim Their American Identity / 67
Strengthening the Civic Culture Through Voluntary Pluralism / 69
TWO. OUTSIDE THE CIVIC CULTURE: THE COERCIVE PLURALISMS / 77
4. “Go Back to the Country from Whence You Came”: Predatory Pluralism and the Native American Response / 80
5. “This Fourth of July Is Yours”: African-Americans and Caste Pluralism / 87
The Early Agreement to Exclude Blacks from Participation in the Republic / 87
The Changing Nature of Caste After Emancipation / 94
The Depression: Tightening the Boundaries of Caste / 100
Black Political Action Before the Second World War / 105
6. “I Go Sad and Heavy Hearted”: Sojourner Pluralism for Asians and Mexicans / 110
Keeping Asian Sojourners in Their Place / 112
Mexican Sojourners: Turning the Spigot On and Off / 118
The Big Bracero Program / 122
7. “The Road of Hope”: Asians and Mexicans Find Cracks in the System / 128
Cracks in the System: The Chinese / 128
Cracks in the System: The Japanese / 131
Cracks in the System: The Mexicans / 134
Opportunities for Blacks and Asians and Mexicans Compared / 137
Ethnic Stratification: When Sojourners and Blacks Met / 145
THREE. THE OUTSIDERS MOVE IN: THE TRIUMPH OF THE CIVIC CULTURE / 149
8. “Do You Understand Your Own Language?”: Black Americans’ Attack on Caste / 151
Dismantling Caste in the Courts / 152
The Decline of Racial Ideology in the Second World War / 154
The Black Revolution, Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Civil Religion / 158
The Civil Rights Revolution on Television / 159
Revolution in the Minds of Whites and Blacks / 163
The Presidential Response: Kennedy and Johnson / 165
The Battle of Selma / 169
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 / 171
9. “They Never Did Really See Me”: The Assertion of Black Ethnic Identity / 174
The Black Debate Over What to Call Themselves / 181
The Black Power Movement and Urban Riots / 184
10. “We Want Full Participation”: African-Americans and Coalition Politics / 190
Black Elected Officials and Coalition Politics / 192
Jesse Jackson’s Two Rainbows / 197
The Surge of Black