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BackStory · February 10, 2017 · 54m

Immigration Nation

The history of American immigration from the founding to the present. The hosts trace how every wave of immigrants was initially feared, demonized, and eventually assimilated — and how the same arguments recur with remarkable consistency.

Canon

Every wave of anti-immigrant sentiment was fueled by false narratives: Irish would impose papal authority, Chinese would undercut wages to zero, Jews were communist agents. The rumors outran the facts every time.

Highlights

Anti-immigration arguments have not changed in 250 years
Benjamin Franklin complained about German immigrants. The Know-Nothings feared Irish Catholics. Progressives warned about Southern Europeans. Today's debates about Latino and Asian immigration repeat identical arguments.