Scottish Immigration, Ethnic Identity, and Discrimination in America

Introduction: America as a Nation of Immigrants

The United States was originally formed by immigrants who came to the newly discovered continent and settled along the coast. Immigration remains an overwhelming force in America today, which has become the country with the most widespread multiculturalism in the world.

Scottish Immigrants and Early Ethnic Discrimination

My own ancestors came from Scotland around the 1770s. Upon their first arrival on the continent, many Scots were subject to both prejudice and discrimination by the British groups that had taken control of parts of the land. Coming from a poor country, the Scots faced exclusion from trading between colonies: "Scottish merchants traded with the English colonies, but were not allowed to bring out the most valuable commodities, were excluded from the carrying trade between colonies, and could bring in only the produce of Scotland. A poor country had little to export save people, but the demand for servants in the colonies could make this a profitable business" (Brock 1982, p. 4).

Some of the problems that Scottish immigrants encountered in America were similar to the ethnic and social class discrimination they had already faced in Scotland, particularly in their relations with England. The English sought complete autonomy over the colonies and especially over trade with Spain and the Indies. As a result, the Scots faced segregation and ethnic discrimination early on: they were not permitted to become property owners or to conduct trade with other countries. Overall, they were treated as a subordinate ethnic group by the English and were even denied official employment in the colonies in the beginning (Brock 1982, p. 9).

Gradually, however, the Scots managed to become politically influential and even established a colony in Eastern New Jersey before the Act of Union in 1707, when Scotland united with England to form the United Kingdom. After the Union, Scottish influence in the United States grew across many fields, from politics and religion — the Scots brought their Presbyterian tradition with them, which became highly influential — to trade and medicine.

Medicine in North America in particular was greatly shaped by the number of doctors who emigrated from Scotland: "Scotland was a poor country and many of her doctors had no prospect of gainful employment in their native land. Some moved to England, others joined the armed forces or emigrated to British possessions overseas, including the American colonies. The chosen destinations in America were those colonies which, through emigration or trade, particularly the tobacco trade, already had Scottish settlements" (Brock 1982, p. 115). The influence of the modern medical methods brought from Europe by the Scots was therefore considerable. In the beginning the Scots suffered discrimination at the hands of English colonists, but with time conditions leveled, and some of the most successful people in colonial America were of Scottish descent.

Assimilation into the White Mainstream

With the passing of generations, an ethnic group becomes increasingly assimilated into the mainstream culture. The Scots, along with the English and many other European descendants who had settled in the United States, eventually became part of the mainstream "white" culture. As Europeans, they came from countries that, though often quite poor, offered relatively strong educational opportunities. As part of this mainstream culture, members of my ethnic group also participated in discrimination against racial and ethnic minorities, including African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans.

Conclusion

It is very difficult for racial discrimination to desist since there are still ingrained attitudes towards otherness and difference in general. Rather than being isolated according to racial or ethnic criteria, all people should feel part of the large multicultural group that makes up American society.