The Newberry Seminar in American Social History
James Barrett
University of Illinois, Urbana
and
David Roediger
University of Minnesota
How White People Became =93White=94:
Immigrant Workers in the Early Twentieth Century
This paper attempts to treat the ways in which "new immigrants"
from Southern and Eastern Europe were themselves racially
categorized and how they developed ideas about their own racial
identity, and that of others, in the United States.
Concentrating mainly, although not exclusively, on the years from
1890-1924, the paper does not explain how such immigrants "became
white," but rather how an "in between" racial slotting for "new
immigrants" emerged and shaped immigrants' lives and
consciousness. The learning of race on and off the job is
emphasized, as is the relationship between racial and national
identities.
at The Newberry Library=20
Tuesday, June 11, 1996
3:30=965:30 pm
If you are interested in attending, please contact Adam Stewart
at the Scholl Center for Family and Community History, (312)
255-3524 or e-mail stewarta@newberry.org, to obtain a copy of the
paper. The seminar format assumes that all participants have
read the paper in advance. Papers will be distributed only to
those planning on attending the seminar.