Current events in America have immigration in our headlines. There is violent disagreement about the role immigration should play in our nation. To understand immigration today, we really need to go back in time and study how our nation's laws have evolved over the years.
On these pages we'll delve into the past and look at the effects of the everchanging laws on immigration. We can't untangle today's problems without understanding the history that created the problems.
Most of us learned in school the history of European settlements in colonial times on the North American continent. The outlines of that story are familiar, and in some ways comforting to the school children who are descendants of those settlers. But America is home to the descendents of multiple races and sects. To appreciate the "melting pot" label we've accepted for years, we need to understand more about immigration over the centuries.
Rather than try to rewrite the history of America, I'll depend on links to authoritative sources that you can explore in any order you choose. I'll include my comments and ideas, but it's your responsibility to do a little reading and research. If you want to learn, you'll need to put forth a little effort. I think you'll find the time enjoyable and rewarding. Ready? Let's go.
Let's start with a bit of an overview. There's a link at the bottom of this paragraph. You may get lost in the link. I know I did! There are other pages you can explore through the link. If you get lost, come back when you're ready and we'll do more exploring. Human Settlement in North America.
If you followed that link, you got an overview of human inhabitants of our continent, and neighboring Central America and the Caribbean if you continued to explore. Did you spend more time than you intended to? Don't worry. There's plenty more to explore, and you can do it in small bites if you want. History isn't going anywhere.