I chose to complete the web-quest on Jake's blog about my ancestors and how they immigrated to America. Below is my assignment. I spent a lot of time talking to my grandpa about his opinion on the questions and mine as well. I also learnt a lot about his trip to America! Where he came from? Hachenburg, Germany
Where he moved to in America? Washington Heights, New York
Age he immigrated: 11
Other family members he traveled with: He traveled with both his parents and his sister
Why he came to America? My grandpa immigrated to America because his family feared the Nazi party and had heard rumors of their plans for the Holocaust. He was lucky enough to escape just a few months before the Nazis invaded his hometown.
Why people of the same ethnic background live near each other? When my grandfather arrived with his mother and father they picked an area where many German Jews had moved to as well. Immigrants, along with natives, usually stay in the same location as many other people of the same ethnic background. I believe this makes life much easier. Everyone speaks the same language, have the same traditions, and eat the same type of food. It makes it much easier for people to feel comfortable in their surroundings when their surroundings are similar to the ones they had left behind.
Stereotypes of German Jews: A large stereotype of German Jews is the term Yekke that means jacket in German. People use this term to say that German Jews are overly concerned with the formalities of polite behavior. Many say that they are very uptight and conservative. This is the main stereotype that German Jews face specifically.
Why do immigrants come to America even it their situations don’t improve? During the time period that my grandfather immigrated most of the immigrants were escaping some sort of oppression. In these situations most people are just looking for a place where they can be free and do not care whether their environment worsens in the process. Other times, when people are just moving to America to try and improve their lifestyle, many people would rather try and fail than continue living in the state they did. It is always better to know that you tried to improve your life than thinking about what could have happened if you immigrated to America.
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