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BookBook
Author Lee, Erika, author.

Title America for Americans : a history of xenophobia in the United States / Erika Lee.

Publication Info. New York : Basic Books, 2021.
©2019

Copies

Location Call No. Status
 Bloomfield at the Atrium  305.80 LEE    DUE 04-17-24
Edition First trade paperback edition.
Description vii, 462 pages : illustrations ; 21 cm
Note "Originally published in hardcover and ebook by Basic Books in ... 2019."
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 377-442) and index.
Contents "Strangers to our language and constitutions" -- "Americans must rule America" -- "The Chinese are no more" -- The "inferior races" of Europe -- "Getting rid of the Mexicans" -- "Military necessity" -- Xenophobia and civil rights -- "Save our state" -- Islamophobia.
Summary "Many of us like to think of the United States as a nation of immigrants. We pride ourselves on our history of welcoming foreigners and believe this sets our nation apart from every other. But the phrase 'a nation of immigrants' only dates from the mid-twentieth century, and has served to paper over a much darker history of hatred of -- and violence against -- foreigners arriving on our shores. As the acclaimed historian Erika Lee shows in America for Americans, the recent spasm of xenophobic policy and treatment of immigrants -- from the abuses of ICE to the Muslim ban to the proposed border wall -- is only the latest manifestation of another, less known but even more influential American creed. As Lee argues, an intense fear of strangers based on their race, religion, ethnicity, or national origin has always been at the heart of the American project. From Benjamin Franklin calling German immigrants 'swarthy' aliens to the anti-Chinese exclusion movement in 1876 San Francisco to modern paranoia over Mexican immigration and the 'browning of America, ' xenophobia has been an ideological force working hand-in-hand with American nationalism, capitalism, and racism. Offering a new framework and theory of xenophobia to explain what it is, what it does, and how it works, Lee shows that more often than not in our nation's history, xenophobia has been the rule -- not the exception. At the same time, she reveals why we cannot understand institutionalized racism, sexism, classism without first examining the role of xenophobia in creating these related problems. Forcing us to reckon with the less palatable side of American history and beliefs, America for Americans is a necessary corrective and ultimately a spur to action for any concerned citizen"-- Provided by publisher
Subject Xenophobia -- United States -- History.
Immigrants -- United States -- History.
Minorities -- United States -- History.
National characteristics, American -- History.
Nationalism -- United States -- History.
United States -- Race relations -- History.
United States -- Emigration and immigration -- History.
National characteristics, American (OCoLC)fst01033342
Emigration and immigration (OCoLC)fst00908690
Immigrants (OCoLC)fst00967712
Minorities (OCoLC)fst01023088
Nationalism (OCoLC)fst01033832
Race relations (OCoLC)fst01086509
Xenophobia (OCoLC)fst01182003
United States (OCoLC)fst01204155
Genre/Form History (OCoLC)fst01411628
Added Title History of xenophobia in the United States
ISBN 9781541672611 (paperback)
1541672615 (paperback)
9781541672598 (ebook)
9781541672604 (hardcover)
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