Compare and Contrast Essay on Panunzio`s Life in the US and Current Immigrants

Introduction

Most of the 1900 Immigrants looked for jobs and ended up making up a significant percentage of the US labor force. Up to 22 percent of the people in the labor force in the country were foreigners. Important to note is that about seventeen percent of the people in the labor force were born in other countries and came into the United States of America. Even today, immigrants still exist in the United States, and they face challenges, some of which are the same as what immigrants used to go through in the 1900's (Greer, 156). It is important to understand the comparison of the past and present experiences of immigrants in the United States of America as a way of noting any improvements.

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One similarity between the experiences of American immigrants in the past and today is racism. The issue of racial prejudice is so deep-seated in the US that even today; people from other countries find it hard to live the normal life of the Native Americans as long as they are from other races and staying within the country. As Panunzio puts it, the race is the reason he was 'put on the road' (173). After Panunzio and Louis tried two different jobs to raise money, they realize that the jobs were hard had no benefit, after that they landed themselves a job in a Woolen Mill company where Russians showed them a lot of hate, and they had to be thrown out of the company (173). Racial prejudice is one of the issues that still affect immigrants today. For instance, Christina posits that black ethnics are still treated as a distinct group in the US; however, they fight to become influential in the politics of the country.

One difference between the conditions of immigrants in the United States of America in the 1900's and now is that today, immigrants do not have to do only the hard labor, but have the chance to go to school and take part in decent jobs in the corporate sector of the country. For instance, Panunzio's story only present a situation that depicts the US as inhabitable for people from other countries, and all that he does is look for the money to use in traveling back home (173). However, John M. Gosselin addresses the issue of legislative processes to be used in ensuring that immigrants are verified and are protected at their workplaces from oppression by their employers and the employees (220).

Another difference between the situation of the immigrants of the 1900's and today is that people like Pannunzio were not educated enough and did not come into the country legally as there were no structures to regulate the way people came into the country through the borders. Today, coming through the borders of the United States of America would mean that one has undergone scrutiny and the reason for coming into the country known (Gosselin, 187). That has improved the status of the immigrants into the country as they now have education opportunities and reasonable course to be in the country.

Conclusion

In summary, the late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century marks the period known as the Age of Mass Migration, I which the United States of America received the largest number of immigrants. Up to thirty million people from other countries such as Russia and Italy came to the United States and had to suffer some injustices and hardships trying to get money for survival. However, the situation of the immigrants had improved in the country as compared to the past when they only took part in hard labor and were not protected by the laws of the country.

Works Cited

Gosselin, John M. Immigration and Electronic Employment Eligibility Verification (E-Verify). Nova Science Publishers, Inc., 2013.

Greer, Christina M. Black Ethnics. Oxford University Press, 2013.Panunzio, Constantine Maria. The soul of an immigrant. Macmillan Company, 1922.