19th Century Immigration vs. Today: Nativism and Change

Introduction: Why Opposition to Immigration Persists

One of the reasons people oppose immigration today — even though immigrants helped to grow this country in the 19th century — is that the United States is no longer expanding in the same way. People have lived here for generations and fear that further immigration will displace them from their neighborhoods, jobs, or schools. They see America no longer as a land of opportunity for all, but as something they possess and are at risk of losing.

Nativist Sentiment in the Late 19th Century

This was largely the case at the end of the 19th century as well. The original Anglo-Saxon Protestants who shaped the founding of the country after the Revolutionary War had carved out established niches for themselves. They held a clear cultural and ethnic stronghold. The immigrants who arrived after the Civil War and during the Industrial Revolution came from other parts of Europe and from around the world, and in many cases did not share the same culture as the White Anglo-Saxon Protestant majority.

The late 19th century saw a significant shift in the origins of immigrants — from predominantly Northern and Western Europe to Southern and Eastern Europe, including Italians, Poles, and Jews. These new immigrants were often regarded as racially and culturally inferior by the existing population, who were primarily of Anglo-Saxon descent. Nativist sentiments were fueled by groups such as the Know-Nothings and, later, the Immigration Restriction League, which promoted the idea that these new arrivals would not and could not assimilate into American culture, and would erode American values, ideals, and ways of life (Alsan et al.).

Religious Tensions and Cultural Dominance

Religious differences were also a significant source of tension during this period. Many of the new immigrants were Catholics or Jews, in contrast to the predominantly Protestant native-born Americans. This led to fears of religious conflict and the perceived dilution of Protestant cultural dominance. It is worth noting that America was once part of Catholic Spain's colonial empire, and that it eventually came under the influence of Protestant Britain — a historical irony that adds complexity to claims of a purely Protestant national identity. The Know-Nothing Party, for instance, directed much of its hostility specifically toward Catholic immigrants, reflecting how deeply religious identity was intertwined with nativist politics.

Conclusion: Historical Parallels to Modern Immigration Debates

The fears of cultural and economic displacement that drive opposition to immigration today echo longstanding anxieties visible throughout 19th-century American history. Whether directed at Southern and Eastern Europeans in the 1880s or at new groups of immigrants in the present day, the underlying concerns — about assimilation, cultural change, and economic competition — have remained remarkably consistent. Understanding this history of immigration to the United States helps clarify that today's debates are not without precedent, and that the tensions they reflect are deeply embedded in the American experience.

Works Cited

Alsan, Marcella, Katherine Eriksson, and Gregory Niemesh. Understanding the Success of the Know-Nothing Party. No. w28078. National Bureau of Economic Research, 2020.